A Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) hospital in Washington, DC, was the site last week of a row between a college reporter and government officials that quickly escalated into a calls-to-arm by media organizations and First Amendment advocates. David Schultz, a radio reporter for American University, attended a public forum at the hospital for veterans to discuss their medical care, during which he tried to interview an Army veteran, Tommie Canady, off to the side. The hospital’s press officer, Gloria Hairston, intervened, insisting that Schultz—who apparently failed to identify himself earlier by checking in as media—and the veteran would have to sign consent forms before the interview could continue. Things then got ugly as security guards were called in and the sound card from Schultz’s digital recorder was confiscated. After Schultz retold the ordeal over the air at station WAMU and claimed the VA was trying to suppress the story of a veteran, media groups expressed their outrage in letters to the department.