The Labor MP and Parliamentary Joint Committee on Intelligence and Security member said his aim is to "ensure security measures are balanced with the protection of civil liberties".

"Journalism is not a crime in this country and journalists should not be treated like suspects," Dr Kelly said.

The committee is investigating this year's Australian Federal Police raids on the home of News Corporation Australia journalist Annika Smethurst and on the offices of the Australian Broadcasting Corporation.

The leaked documents sought in the raids surround reports of a plan by the government to lift a ban on the Australian Signals Directorate spying on its own citizens, and documents relating to potential war crimes committed by the Australian Special Air Service Regiment in Afghanistan.

The government has said it pushed for the inquiry based on concerns surrounding the raids, and the issue of balancing national security with freedom of the press. As of Friday, the committee now has its hands on all submissions from interested parties, and will report to Parliament by October 17.

"Labor supports freedom of the press - it is at the core of our democratic society," Dr Kelly said.

"In contrast, the government has failed to demonstrate the leadership Australians expect and stand up for the freedom of the press."

A new poll by Digital Rights Watch said 74 per cent of people are concerned about the recent raids, and 71 per cent have concerns over law enforcement agencies having the power to break into encrypted communications systems.

"We know that people are concerned about the raft of powers that have been given to law enforcement over the past few years," the organisation's chair Tim Singleton Norton said.

"There is a glaring lack of transparency and oversight over how these powers are used.

"In the last year alone, government agencies made more than 300,000 requests for metadata, with only five of these requests being refused. That's a huge disparity, and one that points to what we've known all along - for the government to suggest this is anything other than blanket surveillance of the Australian population is ridiculous."

An open letter to the government from the Media, Entertainment and Arts Alliance, signed by a number of prominent journalists, said in a "healthy democracy" whistleblowers should be protected.

"A healthy democracy cannot function without its media being free to bring to light uncomfortable truths, to scrutinise the powerful and inform our communities," the letter said.

"Investigative journalism cannot survive without the courage of whistleblowers, motivated by concern for their fellow citizens, who seek to bring to light instances of wrongdoing, illegal activities, fraud, corruption and threats to public health and safety.

"Whistleblowers and the journalists who work with them are entitled to protection, not prosecution. Truth-telling is being punished."