A first amendment audit in Sedona is drawing attention across the Verde Valley — and prompting a response from the local business community.
First amendment auditors are individuals who film interactions with business owners, private citizens, and public employees in public spaces — testing whether those encounters respect the constitutional right to record in public.
Jason Gutterman — a full-time traveling videographer who runs the YouTube channel Amagansett press — was among two people who stood outside a crystal shop in uptown Sedona on April ninth, filming the storefront. Gutterman has roughly 640-thousand subscribers and describes himself as a photojournalist. He has spent more than seven years traveling the country documenting these kinds of encounters.
The shop owner and her landlord confronted the pair — with the landlord claiming the sidewalk was private property. Sedona police responded, and the sixteen-minute video ended with officers moving the pair away from the storefront. The YouTubers are threatening legal action against the officers.
The greater Sedona chamber of commerce issued a statement Monday acknowledging the right to film in public spaces — but saying staff, city employees, and business owners have since faced harassment through social media, phone calls, and online reviews. The chamber is calling on the Sedona community to stand together in response.