Coalition News

David Snyder, Journalist and First Amendment Lawyer, Named to Head FAC

David Snyder, a lawyer and journalist who has worked at the highest levels of both professions, has been selected as the new Executive Director of the First Amendment Coalition. He takes over leadership of the free speech and open-government organization on January 1. Snyder is an attorney in the San Francisco office of Sheppard Mullin Richter & Hampton, a global law firm. His practice includes litigation and counseling in the areas of First Amendment rights

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Can the First Amendment Survive President Trump?

BY PETER SCHEER—Freedom of speech is as fragile as it is precious. President-elect Donald Trump likes to talk about a future in which America will be great “again.” Freedom of speech—in particular, the right to criticize government without having to whisper and look over one’s shoulder—is why, frankly, America is great now. Freedom of speech derives from a mere handful of words inscribed on aged parchment  (“Congress shall make no law . . .”) whose

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FAC Update

New ED Here at FAC we have been busy conducting a search for a new Executive Director. We received over fifty applications, the vast majority from highly qualified candidates in the areas of law,  journalism, public policy, business and nonprofit organizations. A committee of FAC’s Board, led by Board President Carol Melamed, has conducted dozens of interviews, both by phone and in person, to narrow down the field of applicants to just a handful, who

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FAC sues LA council over destroyed public records

A new lawsuit filed by the First Amendment Coalition against Los Angeles highlights local governments’ all-too-common—and illegal—practice of destroying public records. The suit, filed Thursday in Superior Court for Los Angeles County, focuses on documents that went missing when a termed-out council member, Tom LaBonge, left office in 2015. Thousands of documents about city business—”public records” under California law—had been boxed up, marked for destruction, and removed from LaBonge’s council office, according to news accounts

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FAC partners with Online News Association to assist digital journalists

The First Amendment Coalition is delighted to announce a partnership with the Online News Association to provide ONA members—-digital journalists working primarily for digital media platforms—with legal help on First Amendment and other media law matters through FAC’s Legal Hotline service. The Legal Hotline is a legal consultation service available on FAC’s website. Users submit legal questions using FAC’s online form. The questions are answered by lawyers—all experts in media law—at Bryan Cave, a national

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