Wowza, that’s some surprising news to come home to. Oscar-nominated and Emmy-winning director of Gasland, Josh Fox, was arrested today at Congress. Why? Well, he was trying to film a committee meeting about fracking. Hmm,… that’s illegal? Filming our publicly-elected Congresspeople at work is illegal? Yikes.
“The House Science Committee had convened to discuss the EPA’s findings about possible water contamination from fracking in an Ohio town, but evidently they weren’t interested in being recorded,” Jess Zimmerman of Grist writes. “An ABC News crew was turned away from the hearing, and Fox was ejected from the premises and arrested for ‘unlawful entry.'”
Not cool.
Apparently, Fox (and ABC) could have been there if they had the right press credentials, but they didn’t. Surprising that ABC didn’t know how to get the right press credentials….
Democratic Rep. Brad Miller was apparently all for Fox, ABC, and anyone else being allowed to film the meeting, saying “the fella who wanted to film for HBO be allowed to film this hearing and that ABC be allowed to film this hearing and all God’s children be allowed to film this hearing until the room is too full for us to conduct our business.” Of course, Republicans knocked that down, yet another instance showing how ironic it is that brainwashed Republican voters think their party is so much more “American” and democratic. What freedoms we would lose if they were in charge of everything!
As a result, the hearing was recessed and Fox was walked out in handcuffs. Nice.
Source: Grist
