Illinois
ProJourn expands to provide Illinois journalists with pro bono legal help
The Reporters Committee for Freedom of the Press announced today that it will expand its ProJourn program to journalists and newsrooms in Illinois. ProJourn currently assists journalists with public records access in California, Georgia, New York, North Carolina, Texas, and Washington, as well as with pre-publication review and business-related legal needs nationwide.
“We are thrilled to expand ProJourn to Illinois, where there is growing momentum in support of nonprofit newsrooms and independent journalists delivering exceptional investigative reporting,” said ProJourn Director Flavie Fuentes. “As a program that proactively supports newsrooms serving historically marginalized communities, including those whose first language is not English, we look forward to supporting Illinois’ ethnic media and providing crucial legal assistance to all local journalists.”
Among the initial law firms partnering with ProJourn that have offices in Illinois are Akerman and Davis Wright Tremaine.
Since the program was piloted by Microsoft and Davis Wright Tremaine in 2020 and 2021, ProJourn has provided free legal support for more than a hundred local journalists and news organizations, filling a critical, growing need.
Operated since 2021 by the Reporters Committee, with a generous investment from the John S. and James L. Knight Foundation, ProJourn unites law firms and corporate in-house counsel to help with pre-publication review, public records access, and business legal needs — adding capacity to the Reporters Committee’s existing efforts, including the organization’s litigation program and Local Legal Initiative, and the Free Expression Legal Network, a national network of law school clinics.
In 2023, attorneys working with ProJourn logged nearly 2,500 pro bono hours supporting local journalists and newsrooms. In Vallejo, California, for example, ProJourn helped the nonprofit newsroom Open Vallejo obtain public records that paved the way for its groundbreaking local journalism that exposed how city officials intentionally destroyed key evidence related to police shootings.
“ProJourn has been absolutely transformative to our work,” Open Vallejo Executive Editor Geoffrey King told the Reporters Committee at the time. “It’s important to have powerful allies in the fight for truth.”
Last year, attorneys working with ProJourn also vetted 45 stories before publication, handled 25 public records matters, and led 14 trainings — including several in Spanish — teaching journalists everything from how to access public records to how to mitigate legal risks before publishing.
For more information on ProJourn, visit rcfp.org/projourn.
The Chicago Bears released a statement on Wednesday after Illinois legislators took a step forward with keeping the team in the state.
Shortly after the bill passed out of a House committee 15-5 and then was passed again by the full House, the Bears said the bill is not enough for them.
“We welcome the progress made on the House’s version of the mega project bill; however, additional amendments are necessary to make the Arlington Heights site feasible for our stadium project. We support Illinois leaders as they determine the path forward to making the essential changes to the mega project bill and aligning on infrastructure funding,” the team said in a statement.
The vote on Wednesday came after lawmakers spent weeks working to address concerns and criticism that the bill provided incentives to the team to leave Chicago and surrounding potential revenue shortfalls to area schools if the stadium is built in Arlington Heights.
Despite the team’s dissatisfaction, the megaprojects bill, which would allow the Bears to negotiate property tax payments directly with the Village of Arlington Heights, is headed now to the Senate.
A key piece of legislation designed to keep the Chicago Bears’ stadium project in Illinois is being weighed, and Rose Schmidt has details on what’s in it.
That said, the bill’s lead Senate sponsor State Sen. Bill Cunningham told NBC Chicago’s Mary Ann Ahern that legislators “feel no pressure to take a vote next week” when the Senate returns on Tuesday.
“We will work this bill like any other bill,” Cunningham said.
Though the team is not satisfied with the deal, it seems Illinois Governor Pritzker is.
“Governor Pritzker has been clear and consistent for years that the Bears should remain in Illinois, and that any legislation needs to protect taxpayers. Throughout the past few months, the Governor’s Office brought team leadership, local officials, and legislative partners to the table to craft a deal around public infrastructure improvements, property tax fairness, and affordability measures. Today is an important step, and the Governor’s Office looks forward to working with the Illinois General Assembly to advance a bill that reflects our shared priorities,” Pritzker’s office said in a statement on Wednesday.
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