Leaders of major media companies are urging Israel to lift a ban preventing foreign journalists from independently entering Gaza. This restriction has been in place since the war began in October 2023. The executives released a statement Thursday emphasizing the importance of on-the-ground reporting for questioning official accounts and speaking directly with civilians. Despite a ceasefire and reduced fighting, Israel has not responded to discussions about lifting the ban. Initially, Israel said the ban was necessary because foreign journalists allowed into Gaza could give away the positions of Israeli soldiers and endanger them.

The Supreme Court is siding with a faith-based pregnancy center that raised First Amendment concerns about an investigation into whether it misled people to discourage abortions. The high court’s ruling Wednesday is a procedural victory for First Choice Women’s Resource Centers. It's challenging a New Jersey probe of its practices. The conservative-majority court has given abortion opponents high-profile wins in recent years, most notably the watershed case that overturned the nationwide right to abortion in 2022.  First Choice had also drawn support from the American Civil Liberties Union, which supports abortion rights but backed the group’s First Amendment concerns.

For the first time as president, Donald Trump is planning to attend the annual White House Correspondents Association dinner in Washington this weekend. Some critics can't believe that the reporters would invite a president who has battled with the press, particularly during his second term in office, and want them to speak up about the First Amendment. The so-called nerd prom already makes some people queasy for the appearance of reporters partying with their high-level sources. Some journalists who have attended the dinners say it pays dividends for their jobs — they make personal connections with people who might not otherwise return phone calls.

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Mourners carry the coffin of Lebanese journalist Amal Khalil, who was killed Wednesday in an Israeli airstrike, during her funeral procession in the village of Baysariyeh in southern Lebanon on Thursday, April 23, 2026. (AP Photo/Mohammed Zaatari)