Miami ? A Florida law that bars exit polling near voting places violates the media’s rights under the First Amendment, a lawsuit filed by The Associated Press and five television networks alleges.

The lawsuit filed Friday in U.S. District Court in Miami contends that a 2005 amendment to state law that prohibits asking a voter a “fact” or “opinion” within 100 feet of a polling place is unconstitutional.

The AP and the five television networks – ABC, CNN, CBS, Fox News and NBC – formed a consortium to collect exit-polling data in Florida and other states.

They contend that conducting exit polls farther from voting places breaks down the statistical accuracy of their polls. Data about voter behavior becomes unreliable because voters are more likely to leave the area or blend into a crowd of nonvoters, the lawsuit states.

The news organizations also had challenged a 2004 directive by Ohio’s elections chief against exit polling within 100 feet of a voting place. On Tuesday, U.S. District Judge Michael H. Watson ruled the order violated the media’s rights under the First Amendment.