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US may vet foreign journalists’ social media for visas
The United States plans to expand social media screening to foreign journalists seeking visas, according to an internal State Department memo reported by Reuters and The Daily Signal. The proposed vetting would…
The Story in Brief
The United States plans to expand social media screening to foreign journalists seeking visas, according to an internal State Department memo reported by Reuters and The Daily Signal. The proposed vetting would examine applicants' online presence to determine if they meet US visa requirements, adding another layer of scrutiny for international reporters. The State Department declined to confirm the memo's contents but said it screens foreign nationals 'to the maximum extent possible' for security risks.
Separately, the Department of Homeland Security has introduced fixed periods of stay for I visas (foreign journalists), F visas (students) and J visas (exchange visitors), taking effect 60 days after publication in the Federal Register. The changes are significant for Indians, who form the largest international student community in the US with 3,63,019 enrolments in 2024-25, ahead of China's 2,65,919, as per Institute of International Education data cited by Times Now.
The Indian Opinion
Many will rush to call this a crackdown on press freedom or a Trump-era move targeting Indian journalists. But the proposal applies uniformly to all foreign media representatives, not Indians alone. The bigger practical impact may be on Indian students, who already face tighter stay limits under the new DHS rule. Watch how many visa applications actually get delayed or denied once the social media vetting begins, that number, not rhetoric, will reveal the true scale of disruption.
Source: timesnownews.com
This story was synthesised by AI from the source linked above.
