> A journo friend of mine told me foreign journalists need special visa to enter the US. In fairness I don't think they have ever refused anyone or expelled the press over reporting but the US knows who is in the country.

What's the reason for the visa, though? Tracking/monitoring or because a work visa is needed? Looking at visitor visas, most employment-type activities are not eligible, including arriving as a crew-member of a ship (https://travel.state.gov/content/travel/en/us-visas/tourism-...).

Journalists going to almost every country as a journalist need a “special visa.” There is nothing new or unique about that.

"Journalist visa, which some countries require of people in that occupation when traveling for their respective news organizations. Countries that insist on this include Cuba, China, Iran, Japan, North Korea, Saudi Arabia, the United States (I-visa) and Zimbabwe."

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Travel_visa

Unfortunately no citation.

I didn't know most countries have a special visa for journalists. What was your source?

How do they know/enforce that? (Put a different way, if I were a journalist what would stop me entering the same way as Joe Average)

Usually when entering a country one is asked the purpose of one's visit. Saying you are there for vacation when really you are there working could be an issue.