Four more journalists have been charged with felonies after being arrested while covering the unrest around Donald Trump's inauguration, meaning that at least six media workers are facing up to 10 years in prison and a $25,000 fine if convicted. A documentary producer, a photojournalist, a live-streamer and a freelance reporter were each charged with the most serious level of offense under Washington DC's law against rioting, after being caught up in the police action against demonstrators. The Guardian learned of their arrests after reporting on Monday that the journalists Evan Engel of Vocativ and Alex Rubinstein of RT America had also been arrested and charged with felonies while covering the same unrest. All six were arraigned in superior court on Saturday and released to await further hearings. "These charges are clearly inappropriate, and we are concerned that they could send a chilling message to journalists covering future protests," said Carlos Laura, the [Committee to Protect Journalists'] senior Americas program coordinator. The National Lawyers' Guild accused Washington DC's metropolitan police department of having "indiscriminately targeted people for arrest en masse based on location alone" and said they unlawfully used teargas and other weapons. None of the arrest reports for the six journalists makes any specific allegations about what any of them are supposed to have done wrong.
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