Missouri Senate moves media off floor after tweets

JEFFERSON CITY — Missouri senators ordered journalists off the Senate floor Thursday after some lawmakers complained their private conversations had been tweeted.

The Senate voted 26-4 to move reporters to a visitors' gallery overlooking the chamber in Jefferson City. Starting March 29, journalists will no longer be allowed at their longtime, 10-seat table near the Senate dais and the desks of several senators. Photographers will still be allowed on the Senate floor.

Senate President Pro Tem Ron Richard says he initiated the move because some reporters had violated the Senate's trust in recent years by tweeting private discussions and negotiations they overheard on the Senate floor.

The Senate floor is "our space, that's not your space," Richard, a Republican from Joplin, told reporters after the vote. The press isn't allowed on the floor of the U.S. Senate either, he said.

http://www.columbiamissourian.com/news/missouri-senate-moves-media-off-floor-after-tweets/article_f6129c6a-6d56-5478-93dd-645e7b57eb17.html