EPA prevents three news organizations from attending conference on water contaminants

Jessica Estepa | USA TODAY

The Environmental Protection Agency kept three news organizations from attending a national summit on harmful water contaminants on Tuesday morning, with the agency insisting it did so because the room was full.

The Associated Press, CNN and E&E News were prevented from attending the first half of the meeting. Politico said its reporter had been allowed into the event, but would be asked to leave for the afternoon.

Following Tuesday morning's reports, EPA announced that the second half of the day would be open to press — something done at the expense of its stakeholders, it said.

AP reported that security guards grabbed its reporter by the shoulders and "forcibly" shoved her out of the EPA building.

"The Environmental Protection Agency's selective barring of news organizations, including the AP, from covering today's meeting is alarming and a direct threat to the public's right to know about what is happening inside their government," AP Executive Editor Sally Buzbee said in a statement. "It is particularly distressing that any journalist trying to cover an event in the public interest would be forcibly removed."

In a statement released Tuesday evening, EPA contended that the AP had been told the night before that the conference was at capacity, and that the reporter in question had refused to leave the building.

"When we were made aware of the incident, we displaced stakeholders to the overflow room who flew to Washington for this meeting so that every member of the press could have a seat," EPA spokesman Jahan Wilcox said in an email to USA TODAY.

CNN said in a statement that it had been turned away from covering the summit.

"While several news organizations were permitted, the EPA selectively excluded CNN and other media outlets," it said. "We understand the importance of an open and free press and we hope the EPA does, too."

E&E, an environment and energy-focused news site, said on Twitter that its own reporter had also been prevented from attending. E&E reported the event was open to the press, but not to reporters from the barred organizations.

This morning's PFAS Leadership Summit at @EPA headquarters is open to the press... just not to reporters from @EENewsUpdates, @AP or @CNN. We've all asked the agency's press office why we're being selectively shut out and have gotten no responses. — Corbin Hiar (@CorbinHiar) May 22, 2018

EPA's Wilcox that the room had reached capacity in the morning, "which reporters were aware of prior to the event."

"We were able to accommodate 10 reporters, provided a livestream for those we could not accommodate and were unaware of the individual situation that has been reported," Wilcox said.

Wilcox later said that the second half of the summit would be open to press and emphasized that the first part of the day had been livestreamed.

EPA announced the conference in March, saying it was convening the summit to bring together stakeholders to discuss man-made chemicals known as Per- and Polyfluoroalkyl Substances (PFAS). The chemicals are used to to make products that are stain-resistant, waterproof or nonstick, according to EPA.

“EPA’s leadership summit will bring together stakeholders from across the country to build on the steps we are already taking and to identify immediate actions to protect public health,” EPA Administrator Scott Pruitt said at the time.

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