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SEATTLE (AP) — Faced with increasing criticism of a proposal that would restrict media filming in wilderness areas, the head of the U.S. Forest Service said late Thursday that the rule is not intended to apply to news-gathering activities.

Chief Tom Tidwell says the rule would apply to commercial filming, like a movie production, but reporters and news organizations would not need to get a permit to shoot video or photographs in the nation's wilderness areas.

He says the agency wants feedback to help make sure the rules are clear and consistent.

Mickey Osterreicher, general counsel for the National Press Photographers Association, says the proposal is so vague that "the language does not reflect that intent."

He says the agency needs to craft unambiguous language that exempts news-gathering.

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