ECBAWM has filed an amicus curiae brief on behalf of the International Documentary Association, Film Independent, and a host of award-winning documentary filmmakers opposing a New York City subpoena seeking outtake footage from the Ken Burns documentary The Central Park Five. Five young men were convicted of the notorious 1989 rape and assault of a jogger in Central Park and served lengthy prison terms as a result. All five were later exonerated by DNA evidence. The men then brought suit against the City of New York, prosecutors, and police detectives for wrongful conviction. (In re McCray, et al., No. 03 Civ. 9685.) As part of its defense, the City issued a subpoena to Florentine Films, Ken Burns’ production company, seeking outtake footage from interviews conducted for The Central Park Five, which explores the case, the historical context, and the lives of the five men. The amicus brief argues that the subpoena would violate the federal common law “reporter’s privilege,” and undermine the efforts of documentary filmmakers to report on controversial topics. The brief was prepared by ECBAWM’s Andrew G. Celli, Jr. and Julia Fong Sheketoff, along with co-counsel Michael Donaldson of the firm Donaldson & Callif LLP in Los Angeles.