Police posing as journalist sets a dangerous precedent that lead to blurred roles and an erosion of public trust in journalism, critics said.
The phone never should have been handed to police "without a warrant or other legal means of compulsion", Michael Socolow, a journalism professor at the University of Maine, told the Bangor Daily News.
Dan Kennedy, a professor of media ethics at Northeastern University, agreed that the incident "raises media ethics concerns" but recognised that "in-the-moment" decisions were required.
"You can see what a difficult situation everybody was in," Kennedy told the newspaper. "Lives were at stake here."
Maine State Police and the TV station declined further comment Thursday.
Livermore Falls is located about 45km northwest of Augusta, Maine.
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