By Joe W. Bowers Jr. | California Black Media
On Jan. 30, Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass attended independent journalist Don Lemon’s federal court appearance at the Edward R. Roybal Federal Courthouse following his arrest in Los Angeles by federal authorities for conduct tied to his reporting on a protest nearly 2,000 miles away in St. Paul, Minnesota.
Shortly afterward, Bass convened a Zoom roundtable of Black elected leaders, city officials, and journalists to discuss what the case signaled — not just for Lemon, but for journalism more broadly.
Elected leaders joining the call included U.S. Rep. Sydney Kamlager-Dove (D-CA-37), Los Angeles County Supervisor Holly Mitchell (2nd District), Assemblymembers Tina McKinnor (D-Inglewood), Mike Gipson (D-Carson), and Sade Elhawary (D-Los Angeles), and State Sen. Lola Smallwood-Cuevas (D-Los Angeles). While the meeting was prompted by Lemon’s arrest, the discussion quickly moved beyond him, turning to growing concerns about the vulnerability of Black journalists covering protests and dissent.
While Lemon was being arrested, Georgia Fort, an award-winning Minneapolis journalist, was also arrested and charged in connection with her coverage of the protest inside the Cities Church in St. Paul reportedly targeted because a pastor worked as field director for Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE).
Both Fort and Lemon have said they were reporting.
However, prosecutors allege conspiracy and violations of the Freedom of Access to Clinic Entrances (FACE) Act — a federal law that prohibits force, threats, or obstruction at reproductive health facilities and places of worship.
In this case, the law is being applied to include journalists documenting a protest. Participants on the call said that use of the law raises concerns because it risks treating routine newsgathering — presence, questioning, and narration — as criminal conduct.
A magistrate judge initially declined to authorize charges, but the Department of Justice moved forward with a grand jury indictment. Jake Tapper, a former CNN colleague of Lemon’s, called the case “shocking,” noting that a chief judge concluded Lemon and his producer were journalists — not protesters — with no evidence of criminal conduct.
In a public statement issued after the arrest, Bass said the case “is about the First Amendment and the right of journalists to do their jobs without fear of intimidation or retaliation,” adding that journalists “must be able to cover events of public concern without being treated as criminals.”
That framing set the tone for the Zoom discussion. Participants raised concerns that Lemon’s speech and presence were being used to transform journalistic activity into evidence of criminal intent. Several warned that such an approach places journalists working outside major institutions at heightened risk.
Kamlager-Dove said the arrests cut to the heart of democratic accountability.
“Journalists must be able to report on protests, government actions, and civil rights issues without fear of arrest or retaliation,” she said. “When reporters are targeted for doing their jobs, it threatens the public’s right to know and undermines our democracy.”
Lemon, speaking after his court appearance in Los Angeles, described the stakes plainly. “I have spent my entire career covering the news,” he said. “I will not stop now. There is no more important time than right now… for a free and independent media that shines a light on the truth and holds those in power accountable.”
As the discussion continued, the roundtable’s participants also made clear why Fort’s arrest mattered. Unlike Lemon, she is not a national television figure, a distinction participants said shows how independent journalists without major institutional backing are often the most vulnerable.
McKinnor said that reality cannot be ignored. “Black journalists have long played a critical role in documenting what others overlook or avoid,” she said. “When reporters are arrested for covering protests, it sends a message that truth-telling itself is being criminalized.”
Participants noted that the Minnesota protest space was multiracial, yet Black journalists were among those arrested — a pattern several described as familiar when Black reporters cover protests, immigration enforcement, policing, or civil rights issues.
Smallwood-Cuevas called the arrests “deeply troubling” and warned that “when journalists are arrested for documenting protests, it sends a chilling message not just to the press, but to the public.”
The implications of Fort’s and Lemon’s arrests have drawn responses from leaders of the California Legislative Black Caucus (CLBC) who were not on the Zoom call.
Caucus Chair Akilah Weber-Pierson (D-San Diego) said Lemon’s arrest “is deeply troubling and should concern every American who values democracy.” She said that “a free and independent press is protected by the First Amendment because journalists are meant to question power, expose wrongdoing, and inform the public,” warning that silencing journalists for doing their jobs “undermines the very foundation of our constitutional rights.”
CLBC Vice Chair Isaac Bryan (D-Ladera Heights) placed the moment in historical context. “Black voices matter. Black journalists matter. Black press has shaped the national discourse and amplified the cries for freedom and justice for the last 200 years,” Bryan said. “We know that a free press, and a Black free press in particular, is fatal to fascists. So do they- that’s why they are using unconstitutional and illegal violence on our journalists. They will not be silenced, and neither will we.”
