Justice Department makes it easier to get information from journalists again

The Justice Department is rolling back rules from 2022 that made it harder to get information from journalists. This means the department can now more easily question, arrest, or get records from news media members, returning to practices from before 2022.

Rules adopted in 2022 aimed to protect journalists from government scrutiny. The Justice Department now says those rules made it harder for the department to do its job, especially when safeguarding classified information. This change means the department prioritizes its own information security over the protections for news media that were briefly in place.