In a deeply alarming move, FBI agents raided the home of Washington Post reporter Hannah Natanson and seized her phone and two computers—despite the fact that she has not been charged with any crime and is not the target of a leak investigation.

This unprecedented act came just weeks after Natanson published a piece detailing her year of confidential conversations with more than 1,100 federal workers. These were sources who trusted her with sensitive—but legally protected—insights about how the government operates under pressure. Now, their safety and confidentiality may be permanently compromised.

Federal law and DOJ guidelines explicitly limit the government’s ability to search or seize journalists’ work product—especially in their homes. These safeguards exist to protect press freedom, the public’s right to know, and the constitutional principle that journalism is not a crime.

According to the Post, Natanson was never contacted or asked to cooperate before her home was searched. Instead, she awoke to agents taking the very tools she uses to do her job—tools that likely contain confidential communications with whistleblowers and other protected sources.

This is a serious breach of press protections. It also raises urgent questions:

Did the FBI follow DOJ guidelines for searching a journalist’s residence?
Did they obtain the necessary internal approvals and legal thresholds?
What precedent does this set for future reporting on national security?

We, the undersigned, call on:

• The Department of Justice to release the full affidavit and legal justifications for the raid;
• Congress to investigate whether FBI agents violated DOJ’s own rules regarding journalist protections;
• The FBI to immediately return any journalistic material unrelated to the specific classified leak case.

Freedom of the press cannot survive if reporters are treated like criminals for doing their jobs. Stand with Hannah Natanson. Demand accountability now.