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1156 15th St. NW, Suite 1020 Washington, D.C. 20005 (202) 795-9300 • www.rcfp.org Bruce D. Brown, Executive Director [email protected] • (202) 795-9301

STEERING COMMITTEE CHAIRMAN STEPHEN J. ADLER STEERING COMMITTEE MEMBERS WOLF BLITZER CNN DAVID BOARDMAN Temple University THEODORE J. BOUTROUS, JR. Gibson, Dunn & Crutcher LLP MASSIMO CALABRESI Time Magazine LYNETTE CLEMETSON University of Michigan MANNY GARCIA Austin American-Statesman EMILIO GARCIA-RUIZ San Francisco Chronicle JOSH GERSTEIN POLITICO ALEX GIBNEY Jigsaw Productions SUSAN GOLDBERG National Geographic GAIL GOVE NBCUniversal JAMES GRIMALDI The Wall Street Journal LAURA HANDMAN Davis Wright Tremaine DIEGO IBARGÜEN Hearst JEREMY JOJOLA 9NEWS Colorado KAREN KAISER Associated Press DAVID LAUTER The Los Angeles Times MARGARET LOW WBUR COLLEEN MCCAIN NELSON The McClatchy Company MAGGIE MULVIHILL Boston University JAMES NEFF The Philadelphia Inquirer NORMAN PEARLSTINE New York, New York THOMAS C. RUBIN Stanford Law School BRUCE W. SANFORD BakerHostetler, ret. CHARLIE SAVAGE The New York Times JENNIFER SONDAG Bloomberg News NABIHA SYED The Markup ADAM SYMSON The E.W. Scripps Company PIERRE THOMAS ABC News MATT THOMPSON The New York Times VICKIE WALTON-JAMES NPR JUDY WOODRUFF PBS/The NewsHour SUSAN ZIRINSKY CBS News HONORARY LEADERSHIP COUNCIL J. SCOTT APPLEWHITE, Associated Press CHIP BOK, Creators Syndicate

DAHLIA LITHWICK, Slate

TONY MAURO, American Lawyer Media, ret

JANE MAYER, The New Yorker ANDREA MITCHELL, NBC News

CAROL ROSENBERG, The New York Times

PAUL STEIGER, ProPublica

SAUNDRA TORRY, Freelance Affiliations appear only for purposes of identification.

January 25, 2022 Ms. Paula Tonilas Assistant General Manager Communications Department RTD [email protected] Re: RTD Filming Request & Authorization Form Dear Ms. Tonilas, I represent the Colorado Press Association, the Colorado Broadcasters Association, Colorado Freedom of Information Coalition, Colorado News Collaborative, and its members; some of whom recently received your January 13 and 14 email responses to a request made by journalists to cover a news story in Union Station. According to a new policy implemented by the Regional Transportation District (“RTD”), put in place to “preserve media access,” all members of the media who wish to film, photograph, or shoot video on RTD-owned premises must fill out a film request form, and follow other guidelines. In its most recent communication on this subject, RTD clarified that an insurance coverage requirement, for any losses that might be sustained during “filming,” does not apply to news media who are engaged in day-to-day coverage of breaking events. However, the remainder of the policy, including onerous provisions of the application form apparently still apply to the news media. Because we do not believe you intended this policy to have such a broad application, we write to respectfully ask you to clarify, and confirm, that this policy applies only to commercial film production companies, not to members of news media who have a First Amendment right cover events of public significance on government-owned property and transit facilities open to the public. As we read it, the filming request form is not intended to apply to reporters, journalists, broadcasters and the news media who cover the news. Such routine newsgathering activities, for example, do not involve any of the following pieces of information which are called for on the form: “name of film project,” “description of film project,” “estimated total budget of film project,” or “proposed locations for filming on RTD Property.” Nor would it be feasible or possible for working journalists to submit a “script or storyline” ahead of time, and certainly not four weeks ahead of filming. Nor could members of the news media be expected, or required, to deliver “a detailed plan for the exact location, date and time of each shoot, including but not limited to equipment to be used.”

The Colorado press has previously had free, unrestricted access—without the need for prior approval— to RTD locations, many of them in public areas, including Union Station, to engage in newsgathering activities. Taking photos, recording video and audio are “appropriate for the property” and compatible with the normal activity of public transit stations. Since we presume that the RTD’s newly issued policy and form for commercial filming purposes were not intended to apply, at all, to members of the news media, we needn’t discuss at any length here the First Amendment implications of unreasonable time, place, and manner restrictions on speech-related activities in public forums, such as Union Station, and other public transit facilities. See, e.g., N.Y. News v. Metropolitan Transp. Auth., 753 F. Supp. 133 (S.D.N.Y. 1990), citing Gannett Satellite Information Network, Inc. v. Metropolitan Transp. Auth., 745 F.2d 767 (2d Cir. 1984) (the MTA serves as a public forum, and open for expression that is “appropriate for the property and is not ‘incompatible with the normal activity of a particular place at a particular time.”). Further, the newly issued policy on commercial filming appears to impose restrictions on professional film crews (while allowing anyone with a cell phone or camera to shoot photos or record video without need to “apply”), and thus appears to unlawfully discriminate against journalists and members of the news media. See Star Journal Pub. Corp. v. County Court (Division 2) In and for Pueblo County, 591 P.2d 1028 (Colo. 1979) (holding unconstitutional a judge’s order prohibiting the press, but not members of the public, from attending a judicial proceeding). In light of all of the above, we respectfully ask you to please respond, in writing, at your earliest convenient opportunity, by confirming our understanding that RTD’s newly issued commercial filming policy and form are wholly inapplicable to members of the news media. If you would like to discuss this matter further, please do not hesitate to contact me by telephone or email.

Regards,

Rachael Johnson [email protected] REPORTERS COMMITTEE FOR FREEDOM OF THE PRESS

On behalf of: Colorado Broadcasters Association + 271 members Colorado Press Association + 138 members Colorado Freedom of Information Coalition Colorado News Collaborative (COLab)