NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP) -- A nonprofit funding pro bono legal services for local news organizations in five states has picked an attorney to help defend the right to gather and report the news in Tennessee.
The Local Legal Initiative of the Reporters Committee for Freedom of the Press announced that Paul McAdoo will join the organization March 2.
McAdoo joins the group from Adams and Reese LLP in Nashville, where he has represented media and other clients.
"Paul's extensive experience as a media attorney will be a tremendous asset to the Local Legal Initiative, and we are thrilled that he is joining the Reporters Committee as we expand to help more journalists pursue enterprise and investigative stories in their communities," Reporters Committee Executive Director Bruce Brown said in the news release Friday.
The Reporters Committee is funding attorneys in Colorado, Oklahoma, Oregon, Pennsylvania and Tennessee.
The initiative is partially funded by $10 million from the John S. and James L. Knight Foundation.
The free legal services are aimed at helping reporters gain access to public records and court proceedings. The five states were selected from among 30 where advocacy groups and news outlets submitted applications, the Reporters Committee said.