Newsstand - Journalists hit by new US visa rules

A crackdown by US authorities on issuing visas to foreign journalists threatens to cause chaos for overseas broadcasters and newspapers just five months before the presidential election.

The new rules, which come into force next week, will ban overseas reporters and news crews stationed in the US from renewing their visas without leaving the country first.

Just five months before American voters decide who will be appointed to the most powerful office in the world, the US state department said it would no longer allow overseas journalists to renew visas from within the country.

From next week the estimated 20,000 foreign journalists stationed in the US, who used to be able to renew their visas with ease in any major city, will be forced to leave the country to do so.

Rather than applying to renew their visas in Washington or New York, they will be forced to leave the country and re-apply at a US embassy or consulate abroad, delaying their application for between four weeks and six months.

http://media.guardian.co.uk/site/story/0,14173,1256588,00.html

:eek: :confused: :rolleyes:

Please get this administration out of office. Please.

Regime Change 2004

Hmmm, 20,000 foreign journalists in the US. I would say conservatively that I know at least two dozen foreign "journalists" in the US that have never written a piece in their lives. As a matter of fact pretty much all of the children of every newspaper and TV station owner in Turkey that live or have "lived" in the US have done so with "journalist" visas. In fact this was/is a gigantic loophole that the "connected" have used for years in order to accomodate their friends and families, and it is about time that it is cleaned up.

In fact this was/is a gigantic loophole that the "connected" have used for years in order to accomodate their friends and families, and it is about time that it is cleaned up.

That, or the administration is trying to get those unfriendly foreign journalists like this one:

http://www.signonsandiego.com/news/world/iraq/20040624-2012-ireland-bush.html

out of the country during the run-up to the election?

That embarassing interview was taped in the USA.

That, or the administration is trying to get those unfriendly foreign journalists like this one:

http://www.signonsandiego.com/news/world/iraq/20040624-2012-ireland-bush.html

out of the country during the run-up to the election?

That embarassing interview was taped in the USA.

It was an embarassing interview for both the President and the female Irish journalist. She was a little hyper-aggressive and so was the President. However, I did enjoy it even if there was no real answer and not even many real questions.

I would like to see George W Bush go up on BBC's Hard Talk as it would be far more enjoyable intellectually.

An elegant way to redefine "freedom of the Press" ;)