After months of being denied access to public board meetings and press conferences, KFOR, the longest-standing television station in Oklahoma, has emerged victorious in a lawsuit against the Oklahoma State Department of Education. A federal court ruled in favor of the outlet, affirming its First Amendment rights. This development allows KFOR journalists the ability to attend and report on all education department news conferences and meetings, as reported by KFOR.

According to KGOU's PM NewsBrief, State Superintendent Ryan Walters and Press Secretary Dan Isett, who previously had questioned KFOR's legitimacy as a news organization, agreed to grant the station full access to official events. In addition, they have agreed to quickly pay attorney fees and damages amounting to $17.91—a number symbolizing the year 1791, when the First Amendment was ratified.

The conflict began when KFOR, teamed with The Institute for Free Speech, took legal action after their reporters were refused entry and placed in an overflow room while covering the state's Board of Education meetings. The federal judge who granted an earlier temporary restraining order accused the state’s preemptive measures as "little more than a ruse, masking an effort to punish a news organization for its editorial stance," Adweek reports.

"This settlement means that KFOR can continue doing what we’ve done for 75 years: keeping Oklahomans well-informed about their state government," KFOR reporter Dylan Brown told Adweek. He further noted, "If the press freedom enshrined in the First Amendment means anything, it’s that our ability to cover issues of public concern shouldn’t depend on whether government officials dislike our reporting."