Lawmaker Wants to Register Journalists

Charleston Post and Courier: “An Upstate lawmaker who tried to keep the Confederate battle flag flying and whose campaign spending habits were part of a Post and Courier examination of Statehouse money trails says it’s time to register journalists in the state. State Rep. Mike Pitts (R) on Tuesday introduced a bill called the ‘South Carolina Responsible Journalism Registry Law.’ The bill would create requirements for people wanting to work as a journalist for a media outlet, and also before that outlet could hire anyone for a reporting position.”

“Pitts said it’s to stimulate discussion over how he sees Second Amendment rights being treated by the printed press and television news. He added that the bill is modeled directly after the ‘concealed weapons permitting law.”