Violence Against US Journalists Climbs Under Trump, Report Says

Attacks on journalists in the US have increased following Donald Trump’s return to office, according to the Freedom of the Press Foundation, which tracks such incidents. Most of the journalists targeted by law enforcement were covering protests related to the administration’s deportation policies.

The foundation reports 170 assaults on journalists this year, matching the combined total of the previous three years. Between 2022 and 2024, there were 175 reported attacks, The Guardian reported.

In September, Chicago journalist Raven Geary was struck in the face by a pepper ball fired by an ICE officer, despite being clearly marked as press. Geary, along with other reporters and activists, filed a class-action lawsuit against ICE and the Department of Homeland Security, alleging interference with journalists’ rights and excessive use of force. In October, a federal judge issued a temporary restraining order preventing officials from using physical force against anyone reasonably identified as a journalist without probable cause of a crime.