“The truth does not mind being questioned;
~ Unknown
a lie does not like being challenged.”
It’s “Sunshine Week” across the nation — a time to recognize the importance of freedom of information and the public’s right-to-know what its elected and appointed officials are doing and why.
In the United States, the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) was passed on July 4, 1966 by President Lyndon B. Johnson. All 50 states have similar Sunshine or Open Meetings laws on the books, some that predate federal law. Colorado’s Open Records Act (CORA) was passed in 1972.
In the 1950s, Congressman John Moss (D-CA) grew deeply concerned about an pattern of government agencies refusing to provide records and information. Moss believed that lack of transparency was a slippery slope, stating: “The present trend toward government secrecy could end in a dictatorship. The more information that is made available, the greater will be the nation’s security.”
There are specific reasons and circumstances — outlined in the open records laws — when releasing information is not in the best interest of the public. Releasing details about a criminal investigation while its underway could hinder the resolution of a case; keeping military strategies and plans under wraps is necessary to protect troop movements and assets.
But in the great majority of cases, increased access to information is beneficial. Why? Because if the decisions being made are based on truth and facts, those decisions will stand the test of public scrutiny. If the decisions being made are based on faulty facts and/or dishonesty on some level, those decisions deserve to be dismantled.
As a parent and grandparent, when I start asking questions and can’t get 1) a clear answer or 2) a clear explanation why that answer can’t be provided, that’s a red flag. That means someone is doing something they probably shouldn’t be doing, and they know they shouldn’t be doing it.
The same holds true in journalism.
When the powers-that-be clamp down on information and seek to weaken or subvert elements of the Sunshine Laws — they need to be carefully scrutinized in every decision they make. As the axiom goes: “People who have nothing to hide, hide nothing.”
By NIKI TURNER – editor@editorht1885.com
