The Trump secrecy assessment
The U.S. classifies far too many secrets, obstructing democracy.
Excessive government secrecy takes many forms, from agencies needlessly claiming documents are classified to ignoring information requests and destroying records — even when the documents show government fraud or illegal conduct. This hinders a free press, effective oversight, and the public’s ability to self govern.
We need to fight for systemic improvements, and we need the press to vigorously question the government every time it says something is classified.
Featured Items
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Victory on the horizon in the “Free PACER” fight
The fight to free PACER, the federally managed database of public court records that has sat behind a paywall since its inception, has stretched on for more than a decade now. These efforts may finally pay off in 2022 with a bill poised for the Senate floor that achieves many of the aims of the "free PACER" movement.
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New lawsuit could finally bring FOIA transparency to the halls of Congress
Legislative Branch records don’t receive the kind of public scrutiny the Freedom of Information Act brings to the Executive, but that could change thanks to a novel lawsuit over video records related to the January 6 riot at the Capitol.
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Fifty years ago today, Senator Mike Gravel read the Pentagon Papers into the official record. More lawmakers should follow his lead.
While the New York Times and the Washington Post were tied up in the Supreme Court over whether they could report on the leaked Pentagon Papers, Senator Mike Gravel took matters into his own hands.
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Offsetting the carbon costs from the Snowden NFT charity auction
Freedom of the Press Foundation has dedicated a portion of the proceeds from the auction of “Stay Free,” Edward Snowden’s record-breaking NFT artwork, to purchasing carbon offsets to address the emissions associated with the sale. We requested an estimate of the NFT’s output from the decarbonization platform Aerial, and opted for the very top of the estimated range.
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Supreme Court goes live in the age of COVID, and rules on press freedom issues
The Supreme Court will take the unprecedented step of broadcasting its oral arguments for two weeks beginning today, enacting in response to the coronavirus pandemic a measure that government transparency advocates have demanded for years.
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How’s newsgathering during COVID-19 at the state level? Depends on the governor.
Journalists covering state responses to the coronavirus pandemic are hampered as officials reduce seating in briefing rooms, introduce unreliable technology and, in some cases, refuse real-time questions.
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Government transparency cannot be a coronavirus casualty
Government agencies from the local to federal level are failing to live up to their legal transparency obligations even as the stakes for access to relevant information are at an all-time high.
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How do newsrooms get their news tips? We reviewed over 80 news outlets
We looked at over 80 news sites to measure how different newsrooms can get sensitive tips from sources.
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New ruling gives legal boost to a key data journalism tool
A recent federal appeals court ruling may be a big win for data journalists and researchers who depend on scraping to collect information to report on.
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Tell Rep. Adam Schiff to remove this dangerous secrecy provision from this year’s intelligence bill
Democratic Rep. Adam Schiff inserted a provision in the House's intel bill that threatens press freedom.
