Republican Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis barred all local media outlets besides Fox News for the signing of a voting bill Thursday.
DeSantis spokeswoman Taryn Fenske told reporters that the bill signing was a “Fox exclusive,” according to the Sun Sentinal’s editorial writer Steve Bousquet. DeSantis signed the bill live on Fox News’ show “Fox & Friends.”
NEW: News media is barred from entry at Gov. Ron DeSantis’ signing of controversial elections bill, SB 90. DeSantis spokeswoman Taryn Fenske says bill signing is a “Fox exclusive” pic.twitter.com/NAos6kmtQS
— Steve Bousquet (@stevebousquet) May 6, 2021
The bill aims to tighten regulations on things like ballot drop boxes and mail-in voting. DeSantis called it “the strongest election integrity” measure “in the county” while speaking to Fox News. DeSantis was surrounded by a group of individuals and cheers could be heard throughout his interview with the network.
“We’re making sure we’re enforcing voter ID. Look, you have to show a picture idea to do all these other things in society, clearly voting. We’re also banning ballot harvesting,” DeSantis said as he explained the bill.
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Axios also noted that DeSantis gave the bill signing to Fox News as an “exclusive.” Fox News said in a statement that the network had solely booked DeSantis for an interview “and not as a live bill signing.”
“FOX & Friends booked Gov. Ron DeSantis’ (R-FL) May 6th appearance as an interview and not as a live bill signing. Neither the network, nor the show, requested or mandated the event be exclusive to FOX News Media entities,” a Fox News spokesperson said in a statement to the Daily Caller.
The event’s exclusivity prompted pushback from some, with Emily Bloch, president of Florida’s Society of Professional Journalists (SPJ), condemning the move on Twitter.
“Signing a law into office isn’t supposed to be an ‘exclusive,’ since the law itself isn’t exclusive. Actions like this openly defy against a free press. We condemn DeSantis’ office barring journalists from doing their job for the sake of good TV,” Bloch said in a statement for Florida’s SPJ.
Some have slammed the bill and likened it to voter suppression. Moments after DeSantis signed, a federal court lawsuit was filed alleging it “does not impede all of Florida’s voters equally,” Fox News reported. (RELATED: There’s A Formula For Media Coverage Of Georgia’s Election Bill, And We Broke It Down)
DeSantis’ office did not immediately respond to a request for comment from the Daily Caller.