New York appeals court rules NYT doesn’t have to turn over Project Veritas memos

A New York appeals court on Tuesday temporarily lifted part of an order involving The New York Times and the conservative group Project Veritas.

Under the new ruling, the newspaper will not have to turn over or destroy legal memos prepared for the group during the appeal process but will still not be permitted to publish the documents in question, according to Reuters.

The Times, however, reported that it had not immediately sought to get that part of the order lifted and said it instead asked for an expedited hearing. 

“We are pleased that parts of an unconstitutional order have been stayed, and we look forward to having the Appellate Division fully vacate the Supreme Court’s order,” a spokesperson for the Times said in a statement. 

“Notwithstanding all its hyperbole about Veritas obtaining an unconstitutional prior restraint, the NYT did not seek emergency relief overturning that purported prior restraint,” Project Veritas said in a statement to The Hill.

“Veritas joined The Times in its very limited request to maintain the status quo to allow appellate review because the proper administration of justice is paramount to American democracy and the press’ freedoms under the First Amendment,” the group’s statement added.

Tuesday’s decision came after the newspaper objected to an order issued last week that said the memos were not of public concern after the newspaper claimed prohibiting coverage would be unconstitutional.

That decision was criticized by First Amendment advocates and by the Times.

“This ruling should raise alarms not just for advocates of press freedoms but for anyone concerned about the dangers of government overreach into what the public can and cannot know,” Times publisher A.G. Sulzberger said in a statement at the time of the decision.

Project Veritas is suing the Times for defamation regarding a September 2020 article about alleged voter fraud, Reuters added.

Under the leadership of James O’Keefe, Project Veritas attempts to expose what it considers to be liberal media bias through undercover means, though critics view its tactics as misleading and its videos deceptively edited, the news service noted. 

The organization is also under a separate investigation by the Department of Justice regarding the possible theft of a diary belonging to President Biden’s daughter Ashley Biden.