Associated Press General Counsel Karen Kaiser today urged lawmakers to enact bipartisan legislation now before the U.S. Senate to strengthen the Freedom of Information Act and make it work better.
In testimony delivered to the U.S. Senate Committee on the Judiciary in Washington, Kaiser detailed the many problems journalists and the public face when seeking access to public documents.
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Read More… from AP general counsel urges lawmakers to strengthen FOIA
From Las Cruces Sun-News: SANTA FE – The Associated Press filed lawsuits Thursday against Gov. Susana Martinez and administration agencies for refusing to release records about her work and travel schedules, cell phone calls and expenses of the security officers who travel with the governor.
The lawsuits alleging violations of the Inspection of Public Records Act are the latest by media and watchdog groups against Martinez, who has promoted herself as a strong advocate of a transparent government.
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Read More… from AP files open records lawsuits against NM governor
From First Amendment Center: What The Associated Press calls “a massive and unprecedented intrusion by the Department of Justice”(DOJ) into its news gathering activities is more than an affront to a free press — it’s a direct challenge.
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Read More… from Gene Policinski: Seizure of AP phone records: An affront to a free press
From NBC: WASHINGTON — The Justice Department used a secret subpoena to obtain two months of phone records for Associated Press reporters and editors without notifying the news organization, a senior department official tells NBC News, saying the step was necessary to avoid “a substantial threat to the integrity” of an ongoing leak investigation.
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Read More… from AP calls government’s record seizure a ‘massive and unprecedented intrusion’
From NECN.com:
NEW ORLEANS (AP) — After saying last August that a public records request would be fulfilled, Louisiana’s education department is again refusing to provide The Associated Press with records on how schools were chosen to participate in Gov. Bobby Jindal’s new statewide voucher program.
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Read More… from Education dept. again turning down records request
From The Seattle Times:
NASHVILLE, Tenn. — Gary Pruitt, the new president and CEO of The Associated Press, pledged Thursday to continue close cooperation with member news organizations on news collection, open government efforts and generating online advertising revenues.
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Read More… from New AP chief stresses news, business cooperation
A few open government and FOIA news items selected from many of interest that we might or might not have drawn attention to earlier:
NFOIC debuts #OpenGovVideos with interviews featuring Ken Bunting and Emily Ramshaw
The National Freedom of Information Coalition (NFOIC) announced it has introduced #OpenGovVideos, an online video project that will help tell the story of why open government is important to all citizens.
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