Bleeding Heartland journalist wins $50K settlement in suit challenging press pass denial
Iowa state officials agreed Tuesday to pay attorney's fees and change state House policies to settle a lawsuit from a liberal blogger who was denied a press pass for coverage of the Legislature.
The three-member State Appeals Board voted unanimously to approve a settlement agreement with Laura Belin, who has operated the Bleeding Heartland political blog for 17 years. Belin sued Meghan Nelson, chief clerk of the Republican-run Iowa House of Representatives, after Nelson denied her request for a press pass at the start of the legislative session in January.
The pass gives journalists access to desks on the House floor. According to Belin's lawsuit, Nelson did not provide a reason for her denial this year. But after Belin sued, Nelson gave Belin a press pass on Jan. 23 and changed the House policy on qualifications for a credential, eliminating a requirement that journalists be "nonpartisan."
As part of the settlement approved Tuesday, the state will pay $49,000 to Belin's attorneys at the Washington, D.C.-based Institute for Free Speech. Belin agreed to dismiss the lawsuit, and Nelson agreed to keep the "nonpartisan" requirement out of the House press credential policy. Nelson also agreed that if she denies future press credential applications, she will cite the specific element of the policy that she believes applies.
Belin did not respond to a message seeking comment Tuesday. In a Jan. 19 blog post explaining the lawsuit, she wrote that Iowa clerks had "arbitrarily applied an ever-shifting credentialing system" to deny Belin's press pass requests since 2019.
Belin wrote that then-Chief Clerk Carmine Boal in her 2019 decision to deny Belin's request for a press pass said the blogger was not a member of the media. The Iowa Freedom of Information Council wrote a letter objecting to the decision, and the Institute for Free Speech wrote a legal brief arguing that the denial was illegal.
In 2020, Belin said, Nelson denied her request because Bleeding Heartland is "nontraditional" media. Belin said Nelson did not cite a specific reason for denying her press pass request the last three years.
In the complaint, Belin's attorneys alleged that Nelson violated Belin's First Amendment rights and discriminated against her based on her viewpoints.
In a Jan. 24 blog post, Belin wrote that Nelson had reversed her decision, granting her a press pass and reserving a spot for her in the journalists' workspace on the House floor.
Belin acknowledged that though her reporting "was often unsympathetic" to the GOP House, Senate and governor, "until five years ago I never thought House leaders would deny I am a journalist who extensively covers legislative happenings. I knew some GOP lawmakers and legislative staff regularly read my work; even though they usually disagreed with my conclusions, they respected my commitment to research, accuracy, and transparency."
Institute for Free Speech attorneys Courtney Corbello and Charles "Chip" Miller represented Belin in the case.
"We are thrilled that we were able to reach this outcome for Laura, and to have done so quickly," Corbello said in an emailed statement. "The settlement provides permanent policy changes that will lead to greater transparency and consistency in the Chief Clerk’s press credential policy. This is a win for press freedom and the public’s right to be informed about the work of their elected representatives."
Liberal political bloggers Drew Miller and Chris Woods started Bleeding Heartland in January 2007, and Belin joined the site soon after, posting under the name "desmoinesdem." Among other posts that have garnered attention around the state, Belin wrote about Gov. Kim Reynolds missing the deadline for a judicial appointment and her use of federal coronavirus relief funds to pay staff salaries in 2020.
Tyler Jett is an investigative reporter for the Des Moines Register. Reach him at tjett@registermedia.com, 515-284-8215, or on Twitter at @LetsJett. He also accepts encrypted messages at tjett@proton.me.
This article originally appeared on Des Moines Register: Iowa House clerk settles lawsuit with Bleeding Heartland journalist
