Free speech advocates aren’t resting, even after a bill aimed at weakening press freedoms failed in the Florida legislature.
Gov. Ron DeSantis wanted to weaken laws and legal precedents that protect journalists who publish criticism of public figures. The measure failed after media of all ideological stripes opposed it. Bobby Block, the executive director of the First Amendment Foundation, says conservative media initially didn’t want to speak out against the bill.
“It cost them a little bit,” Block said. “They were very reluctant, I think at first, they were against the governor because of his high profile. But they recognized it as an existential threat and spoke out against it, and I think that made all the difference in the world. They exercised their First Amendment rights.”
Pensacola Republican Rep. Alex Andrade sponsored the measure in the House. He says the bill will return next year.
