The Hound | April 7

Hi there,

It’s Tuesday. A federal judge ruled New Jersey cannot regulate Kalshi, imperiling efforts to rein in prediction markets. The Trump administration is targeting bison on federal grazing lands. And, in an off-the-rails press conference yesterday, Trump spilled military secrets, said Iranians are telling him to keep bombing them, and threatened to jail a journalist for not disclosing a source.

This is not routine criticism of the press—it is a direct threat to core First Amendment protections that safeguard investigative reporting and the public’s right to know. Demanding that reporters “give it up or go to jail” is an attempt to criminalize journalism itself. Yet too much media coverage risks framing these statements as political rhetoric, a national security dispute, or another clash between Trump and the press. That framing obscures the seriousness of what is being proposed: using the power of the state to force journalists to reveal sources or face imprisonment.

🖊️ Add your name to call on major news organizations to cover Trump’s threats clearly and forcefully as attacks on the First Amendment—examining their legal implications, their chilling effect on reporting, and the broader pattern of hostility toward the press.

The public deserves reporting that names these threats for what they are. A free press cannot exist if journalists face jail for doing their jobs.

Read about this, and more, with today’s stories:

Trump Threatens to Jail Journalist Who First Reported Missing Airman (The New Republic)

Trump: Iranians Who Are Being Bombed Are Saying “Please Keep Bombing” (Mother Jones)

Supreme Court clears the way for Bannon contempt case to be dismissed (NPR)

Top Fed official sees potential rate hike amid higher gas prices, inflation concerns (PBS)

Himes Fact-Checked on ‘Misleading’ Claims About Warrantless Spying (The American Prospect)

New Jersey cannot regulate Kalshi’s prediction market, federal appeals court rules (The Guardian)

Trump Administration Targets Bison on Federal Grazing Lands (Inside Climate News)

Until next time,

Harry from The Hound

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