The Region : ACLU Apologizes for Barring News Crew

The American Civil Liberties Union in Los Angles apologized for barring a non-union crew from KNBC-TV, the target of a strike by members of the National Assn. of Broadcast Employees and Technicians. Mary Ellen Gale, chapter president, said that a decision to bar the television crew from an ACLU press conference was made by the press relations department, then quickly reversed when chapter executives were notified. The ACLU has a strong workers’ rights policy and doesn’t want to engage in strike breaking, she said. “But we certainly don’t want to hinder freedom of the press. That won’t happen again.”