Early on Feb. 11, a lawsuit was filed in U.S. District Court in Washington, D.C.—a sweeping challenge by 27 Christian and Jewish groups, representing millions of Americans, seeking to block a Trump administration move that would give immigration officers more leeway to make arrests at houses of worship.
For every media outlet in the U.S., the lawsuit was an unexpected development—except for AP.
Within minutes of the suit’s filing, AP had a news alert on the wire, followed three minutes later by a comprehensive, 1,000-word story detailing the plaintiffs, quotes from two of them and their lead lawyer, and insights into the Justice Department’s likely response.
The reason: AP religion news director David Crary—thanks to years of source-building as a national writer—was granted exclusive advance access to the lawsuit and key participants.
AP was more than an hour ahead of its competitors.
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