Let’s support advocates of free access to government information as they observe Sunshine Week, March 11 – 17. The annual celebration which includes Freedom of Information Day on Friday, March 16, is dedicated to dialogue about the importance of open government and freedom of information. Led by the National Society of Newspaper Editors, Sunshine Week underscores the public’s right to know what its government is doing and why.
According to a 2007 survey of 1008 adults commissioned by the ASNE for Sunshine Week, 69% of respondents held the view that our federal government is either “somewhat secretive” or “very secretive” and engages in the monitoring of telephone conversations or opens private mail without court permission. Only 25% believed the federal government to be “very open” or “somewhat open.” About 6% were undecided. Visit the Sunshine Week website for full information and links to other resources.
Freedom of Information Day is observed annually on or near March 16, the birthday of James Madison, who is widely credited as the Father of the Constitution and foremost advocate of openness in government, according to a website maintained by the American Library Association.
Free and open access to government information – Let that sunshine in! Further information on Sunshine Week is at
http://www.sunshineweek.org/
Further information on Freedom of Information Day is at
http://www.ala.org/ala/washoff/washevents/freedomofinfo/freedominformation.htm#intro
Posted by Tom Hobbs, Reference Librarian, USC Aiken Library
