Freedom of information vital to speech and press
Kevin Goldberg with the Freedom Forum Foundation
The right to speak and the right to print, without the right to know, are pretty empty.”
These are the words of Harold Cross, author of The People’s Right to Know, a book largely regarded as inspiration for the federal Freedom of Information Act, which Congress passed in 1967. The FOIA – and its state-level counterparts – guarantees us the right to request records from any government agency, allowing the public to oversee the activities of government. It not only enhances our exercise of the rights to free speech and freedom of the press (as well as the other three freedoms – religion, assembly and petition) but also directly benefits society by potentially exposing government waste, abuse and corruption.
That’s why the News Leaders Association, formerly the American Society of News Editors, created Sunshine Week in 2005. It coincides with the March 16 birthday of James Madison, who, along with drafting the First Amendment and the other nine amendments of the Bill of Rights, is considered the “father of freedom of information.” Sunshine Week is a celebration of all things related to open government.
You don’t have to be a journalist or computer genius to use public records laws – and certainly not to benefit from their use. That’s why we all should celebrate Sunshine Week and public records year-round.