Sunshine Week

Sen. Landrieu Speaks Out Against FEMA Information Delays

Senator Mary L. Landrieu (D-La.) used the occasion of Sunshine Week to speak out against excessive delays by the Federal Emergency Management Agency in releasing information to the news media and public about disasters and their aftermath — particularly regarding Hurricanes Katrina and Rita.

"Open government is a tenet of our democracy, and accountability is never more important than in times of crisis. Only by shining the light on public scrutiny of the government's mistakes can we take steps to prevent them from repeating," Landrieu wrote in an opinion column first published by PoynterOnline and now available for Sunshine Week participants via the Sunshine Week Toolkit.

Landrieu took particular exception to FEMA delays and six-figure fees for releasing information to New Orleans and Baton Rouge newspapers.

"The catastrophic hurricanes and levee failures of 2005 left a lot of unanswered questions and lessons yet to be learned as we prepare for future disasters," she wrote. "These lessons are far too important to leave in the shadows."

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AP President and CEO Tom Curley Calls on News Media to Step Up and Fight for Openness in Government

Citing "some good days recently" for the Sunshine community, Associated Press President and CEO Tom Curley said, "After years of playing mostly defense, and mostly getting beat, we've finally been able to get back on offense and score a few points."

Speaking to a Sunshine Week dinner crowd at the National Press Club in Washington, Curley pointed to legislative gains in Freedom of Information Act reform and toward a reporters' shield law as particular bright spots. "Accomplishments," he said, "that not long ago seemed unattainable."

"Some in the news business think it compromises our objectivity as journalists to set ourselves up as players on matters of public policy even in a cause as just and as close to our hearts as open government," he added. "I respect the high-minded intentions behind this view, but I strongly disagree.

"When a matter of public policy poses a straight-up choice between the public’s rights of access to its government and a government effort to infringe or even narrow those rights, journalists cannot pretend to be disinterested observers."

Read the speech here….

Executive Order on FOIA Has Little Impact on Compliance

National Security Archive Sunshine Week Audit Finds Agency Goals Not Met

Source: National Security Archive

President Bush’s executive order for a “citizen-centered” and “results-oriented” Freedom of Information system did improve customer service at federal agencies, but has failed to make consistent progress on backlogs and has not significantly improved compliance with electronic FOIA requirements, according to the Knight Open Government Survey released March 16 by the National Security Archive at George Washington University.

“Many of the same old scofflaw agencies are still shirking their responsibilities to the public,” said Tom Blanton, director of the Archive. “I’m reminded of how many psychiatrists it takes to change a light bulb — only one, but the light bulb has to really want to change.”

The order set up Chief FOIA Officers at each of 90 federal agencies and asked for FOIA improvement plans from each agency. The Archive’s Survey, the seventh in a series of unprecedented government-wide audits of FOIA performance, analyzed all the agency improvement plans, sent FOIA requests to all 90 agencies (plus 18 major agency components), and queried agency FOIA Service Centers and public liaison offices to test responsiveness.

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Clinton Tells Sunshine Week She's "Committed to Restoring Open Government"

Says Her Attorney General Must Have "Proven Commitment" to Openness

Senator Hillary Rodham Clinton (D-N.Y.) says she is "committed to restoring open government" by not only mandating more open meetings and release of public documents, but also by nominating "an attorney general who has a proven commitment to open government," according to her response to the Sunshine Week 2008: Sunshine Campaign survey of presidential candidates.

Sunshine Week surveyed the presidential candidates on a variety of open government issues, including access to information, Freedom of Information Act reform, secrecy and classification.

To date, Clinton is the only remaining major candidate to respond. Former democratic contenders Gov. Bill Richardson (D-N.M.) replied in full and former Sen. John Edwards (D-N.C.) responded in part.

"I believe in an open, transparent government that is accountable to the people," Clinton wrote. "Excessive government secrecy harms democratic governance and can weaken our system of checks and balances by shielding officials from oversight and inviting misconduct or error.

"To me, openness and accountability are not platitudes — they are essential elements of our democracy," she added.

Clinton's response comes on the heels of a Sunshine Week public opinion survey by Scripps Howard News Service and Ohio University that found three-quarters of Americans think the federal government is secretive, and almost nine in 10 say where a presidential candidate stands on openness is something they consider when deciding who will get their vote.

Read more ....

More People See Federal Government as Secretive; Nearly All Want to Know Where Candidates Stand on Transparency

Three-quarters of American adults view the federal government as secretive, and nearly nine in 10 say it's important to know presidential and congressional candidates' positions on open government when deciding who to vote for, according to a Sunshine Week survey by Scripps Howard News Service and Ohio University.

The survey shows a significant increase over the past three years in the percentage of Americans who believe the federal government is very or somewhat secretive, from 62 percent of those surveyed in 2006 to 74 percent in 2008.

The survey of 1,012 adults was commissioned by ASNE for Sunshine Week, a national initiative that encourages discussions about the importance of open government and freedom of information. Sunshine Week's 2008 Sunshine Campaign is a yearlong effort to have candidates for all level of office — from president to city council — discuss their positions on government access issues.

Half of respondents said government at the state level is secretive, while 44 percent viewed it as open. Nearly all interviewed, 92 percent, said open government is important to them in assessing candidates for state offices such as governor or attorney general. Those who see local government as secretive increased from 34 percent in 2007 to 40 percent in the 2008 survey. And 91 percent said the local candidate's position and record on open government are important to them in making a voting decision.

Read more on the Sunshine Week site.

Sens. Leahy, Cornyn Mark Sunshine Week With New FOIA Bill to Expose Exemptions

Senators Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.) and John Cornyn (R-Texas), co-sponsors of the OPEN Government Act of 2007, on the cusp of Sunshine Week, introduced another bill to strengthen open government. The OPEN FOIA Act calls for Congress to "explicitly and clearly" state its intentions to create any new exemptions to the Freedom of Information Act, typically known as "(b)(3)" exemptions that are often buried in complex legislation.

"Senator Cornyn and I have worked together for years to restore openness and transparency to a government that has become increasingly secretive," Leahy said. "While some government information needs to be kept secret, we cannot allow the government to hide behind the veil of secrecy and curb the public's right to know, just to avoid accountability. Our new legislation will take steps to make clear those exemptions to FOIA, and this is a fitting start to Sunshine Week."

Cornyn remarked, "It was encouraging to see Congress take major steps recently to expand the American people's right to government information. This latest bill is an effort to further enhance government transparency and accountability. Sunshine Week is an opportunity to highlight these important principles of our Founding Fathers — a truly self-governing society depends on an informed citizenry."

Sunshine Week Hosts Open Government Discussion After L.A. Theatre Works' "Top Secret" Production

Sunshine Week will host a discussion on open government and secrecy issues following a Thursday, March 13, L.A. Theatre Works production of "Top Secret: The Battle for the Pentagon Papers" in Los Angeles. The dialogue will be led by Peter Scheer, executive director of the California First Amendment Coalition. Read more online here....

Sunshine Week From Coast to Coast

Maine Gov. John E. Baldacci and Arcata, Calif., Mayor Mark E. Wheetley are among the first public officials to issue proclamations or statements in support of Sunshine Week and the principles of open government.

Urging "all citizens to recognize this observance," Baldacci's proclamation notes, "the free flow of information from the government to the people instills trust and confidence in our democracy and ensures that our government is accessible, accountable and open."

Recognizing the work of the League of Women Voters of Humboldt County, Wheetley points out that "the coverage, commentaries and activities promoting open government during Sunshine Week have led to tangible, meaningful changes to people's lives and the laws that govern them."

Proclamations, statements and other support from public officials and governing bodies can be e-mailed to Sunshine Week for inclusion on the Web site.

Stars Shine in Sunshine Week Print, Broadcast Public Service Ads

Creative Coalition Members Featured in Spots From RTNDF, ASNE and Knight Foundation

A series of broadcast and print public service ads featuring 13 actors, who are high-profile members of The Creative Coalition, speaking about the importance of open and accountable government has been produced for Sunshine Week, March 16-22, and can be used throughout the election season in conjunction with the Sunshine Campaign.

The PSAs were developed by the Radio-Television News Directors Association and Foundation, and the American Society of Newspaper Editors, in cooperation with The Creative Coalition, with support from the John S. and James L. Knight Foundation.

Appearing in the ads are Barry Bostwick, Connie Britton, Saffron Burrows, James Eckhouse, Louis Gossett Jr., Sharon Lawrence, Camryn Manheim, Izabella Miko, Andy Milder, Ron Rifkin, Richard Schiff, Judy Tenuta and Joan Van Ark.

These PSAs join two sets of previously released Sunshine Campaign public service ads in English and Spanish for use on broadcast, in print and online.

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SPJ Offers Sunshine Week Ideas, Resources

The Society of Professional Journalists has produced special Sunshine Week Web pages offering ideas and resources for use by SPJ chapters specifically, in the classroom or by newsrooms in general. The guide offers ideas for coverage, a list of experts and sources, links to relevant reports and studies, curriculum ideas and classroom guides, and other tools to help anyone — not just SPJ members — celebrate Sunshine Week. It's online here.

"It's our duty as journalists, and a key mission for SPJ, to shine a light into the dark recesses of government secrecy," the site explains.