US expands media vetting to journalists, Canada, Mexico

The U.S. State Department is expanding its policy of screening the social media accounts of visa applicants to include foreign journalists and certain professionals from Canada and Mexico, according to an internal memo reported on Thursday, August 6. The move represents a significant broadening of an existing vetting program as part of the Trump administration's ongoing efforts to tighten immigration and visa procedures.

Under the new directive, applicants for these additional visa categories will be instructed to change their social media account settings to public or open to allow for government review. The policy expansion, which also covers dependents of the applicants, is intended to apply to foreign media representatives and qualified nationals from Mexico and Canada entering for business under the United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement.

A State Department spokesperson, while declining to comment on the specifics of the internal memo, confirmed the department's use of "online presence vetting." The spokesperson stated the process is used to ensure applicants are eligible for a visa under U.S. law and to identify individuals who may pose a threat to national security, public...