A DOGE from hell

Dear Friend of Press Freedom,

To ease news fatigue, Freedom of the Press Foundation (FPF) is compiling the best of our newsletters into one weekly digest. Want the short version? Subscribe here on LinkedIn.?

To get any of our individual offerings in your inbox each week, subscribe to them individually on our website: The Latest Issues, our flagship press freedom newsletter; Digital Security Tips, a weekly guide to help protect journalists’ and sources; The Classifieds, our newest weekly deep dive on government secrecy; or a monthly roundup on the state of press freedom from our U.S. Press Freedom Tracker project.?

The Latest Issues: Prosecutor puts DOGE ahead of First Amendment

FPF and a coalition of rights groups sent a letter to interim U.S. Attorney for the District of Columbia Edward R. Martin Jr. to demand he clarify statements suggesting he would prosecute critics of Elon Musk and his Department of Government Efficiency.?

Read the statement and letter here.

What we’re reading: Knight Institute's Jameel Jaffer explains in The New York Times why this is not a moment to settle with Trump; The Federal Communications Commission launches an investigation into a California radio station after a host reveals details of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents in the area, via Barrett Media.

Stay up to date on press freedom news with The Latest Issues.?

The Classifieds: ?Reform the Presidential Records Act — or risk losing DOGE records

404 Media reported that DOGE will be subject to the Presidential Records Act rather than the Federal Records Act. This is a big deal. It would mean, among other things, that the public won’t be able to file Freedom of Information Act requests for DOGE records until five years after the end of this presidential administration. This should serve as a wake-up call for Congress to reform the PRA.?

Plus, the archivist of the United States, who oversees the National Archives and Records Administration, was fired on Feb. 7 by the president without cause. It’s a good time to learn about how you can help save government data.?

What we’re reading: The 404 Media story that breaks down the DOGE PRA drama.?

Subscribe to The Classifieds for updates on secrecy in government.

Digital Security Tips: Signal syncing on new devices

Ever wanted to throw your phone across the room because your Signal chats wouldn’t load onto a new device? Apparently, for FPF Deputy Director of Digital Security Martin Shelton, this is a woe worthy of the harrowing yarn spun in last week’s digital security digest. Luckily, Signal has heard the people’s cries.?

What you can do: Check out Signal’s beta releases to access new features that address this problem. If you’re just getting started, check out our guide to Signal for beginners. Read more about useful tools for end-to-end encrypted conversations.

Subscribe to the Digital Security Tips newsletter from FPF.