CHEYENNE – Lawmakers voted unanimously Thursday to repeal a previously approved rule change that banned photojournalists from entering House chambers during the legislative session.
Last month, members of the Select Committee on Legislative Facilities, Technology and Process voted 4-2 in favor of a policy change that would deny photojournalists access to the chamber floor hallways. The issue caught the attention of news media across the state, reigniting the conversation at the commission’s Thursday meeting in Cheyenne.
Previous arguments in support of the rule change claimed that there was too much traffic in the chamber’s halls and that it was in the governing body’s best interest to remove photojournalists. Lawmakers also reasoned that mounted cameras livestreaming the session still provided some visual access, and photojournalists could take photos from the gallery overlooked by lawmakers below.
Sen. Chris Rothfuss, D-Laramie, one of the members who voted in favor of the new rules, said Thursday he was in favor but “not a strong supporter.” He explained that the arguments in favor of changing the rules were good, and that there was not much objection to it at the time.
“Since then, serious concerns have obviously been raised, and I don’t think the value of this policy change rises to a level that justifies overcoming the concerns raised,” Rothfuss said.
An anecdotal note: Matt Obrecht, director of the Legislative Service Office, said there is typically only one photojournalist in the chamber’s halls at a time. LSO Deputy Director of Operations Anthony Sara agreed with Obrecht’s statement, adding that the photojournalists are good at monitoring themselves. Policy prohibits them from lingering in the area, he said, and there are never more than one or two photojournalists there at a time.
“We don’t have people standing on top of each other taking pictures at those doors,” Sara said.
Freedom of the press
WyoFile Chief Executive and Editor Matthew Copeland was the only media representative to testify against the rule change before lawmakers on Thursday.
“On behalf of the hundreds of thousands of Wyoming residents who rely on our reporting, I would like to say that any restriction on press access to the Capitol is a restriction on the people’s access to the government that represents them,” Copeland said.
He read aloud the First Amendment to the U.S. Constitution, which prohibits Congress from making laws “abridging the freedom of speech or of the press.” Transparency and accountability through the press are critical to holding government to account, Copeland said.
“These are not my ideas. They come straight from America’s founding fathers,” Copeland said. “They are enshrined in the First Amendment of the United States Constitution.”
According to him, restricting the access of photojournalists from the floor of the hall limits press freedom. In response to the argument that mounted cameras and microphones capture lawmakers’ movements on the ground, Copeland said this technology “removes all context around the individual microphone.”
“Whoever is huddled in the corner, who’s moving their leg excitedly, who’s furiously scribbling notes, who’s nodding approvingly or shaking their head in disagreement, who’s busy texting on their phone,” Copeland said. “The people of Wyoming have a right to know.”
Before Copeland’s testimony, committee members briefly discussed the idea of having internal legislative staff take photos for the media. However, Sen. Cale Case, R-Casper, pushed back, saying he couldn’t imagine the Legislature’s internal photos replacing photojournalists’ news process.
“By trying to take photographers off the floor, we broke that realism and connection,” Case said. “We have isolated ourselves from the press.”
