NY court: Filmmaker gave up journalistic freedom

NEW YORK (AP) — An appeals court says a judge did not err when he ordered the release of raw footage of a documentary about a legal dispute between Chevron and Ecuadoreans over the filmmaker’s protests.

The 2nd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals said today that filmmaker Joseph Berlinger gave up his journalistic privilege. It says he made a documentary that was solicited by lawyers for the Ecuadoreans and agreed to make changes at their insistence.

The appeals court says in its written ruling that the privilege shields journalists from most efforts to force the release of film or notes. But it says a journalist must maintain control of a story to do so.

A Berlinger spokesman did not immediately return a message seeking comment.