Advertising

The Seattle Times Company

NWjobs | NWautos | NWhomes | NWsource | Free Classifieds | seattletimes.com

The Seattle Times

Editorials / Opinion


Our network sites seattletimes.com | Advanced

Originally published September 21, 2007 at 12:00 AM | Page modified December 11, 2007 at 1:29 PM

E-mail article     Print view

The Democracy Papers

Let the sun shine

After years of legislative propensity to create new hiding places for public information and a couple of unfriendly court rulings, things finally are starting to brighten for advocates of sunshine in government.

The Democracy Papers is a series of articles, essays and editorial opinion examining threats to our freedoms of speech. Technology has created space for more voices, yet fewer and fewer are heard.

The American press and media are being decimated by consolidation. This transformation from many owners into five or six large corporations and the lessening of small outlets for radio, newspapers, magazines and music are chilling a once robust marketplace of ideas. What should Americans do? This series explores the arguments and the backlash.

Democracy Papers online archive:
www.seattletimes/thedemocracypapers

Daily Democracy, the Democracy Papers blog: blog.seattletimes.nwsource.com/dailydemocracy.

There is much to celebrate this morning at the Washington Coalition for Open Government annual awards breakfast.

After years of legislative propensity to create new hiding places for public information and a couple of unfriendly court rulings, things finally are starting to brighten for advocates of sunshine in government. For starters, a new state Sunshine Committee has begun meeting to scrutinize the validity of exemptions to the state open-records law. And some high-profile lawsuits recently settled with government agencies paying for their wrongdoing.

Among the latter was a suit by Paul Wright, winner of the coalition's James Madison Award, given for dedication to the cause of open government. In June, Wright, Prison Legal News editor and a former Washington prison inmate, won a landmark public-records case when the state Department of Corrections agreed to pay $541,000 in fees and penalties to settle a lawsuit. The agency improperly redacted information on documents he requested relating to a story about prison medical errors and discipline against medical providers.

Frank Garred, retired publisher of the Leader, Port Townsend's newspaper, is the first-ever recipient of the coalition's James Andersen Award, named for the former Washington State Supreme Court justice. It is awarded to an individual who advances the coalition's mission. Garred helped cofound the coalition in 2002 and was its first unpaid executive director.

Additionally, the coalition will honor six others with Key Awards for their efforts to promote open and honest government. They include state House Majority Leader Lynn Kessler, D-Hoquiam, and state Attorney General Rob McKenna, who had a hand in one of the brightest spots in the tension between government secret-keepers and public-disclosure advocates. McKenna proposed and Kessler championed legislation earlier this year that created the new "Sunshine Committee."

The panel is charged with evaluating Washington's nearly 300 exemptions loaded onto the public-records law, which started out with only 10.

Citizens benefit from government conducted transparently, and we all should be grateful for the efforts of these people to make sure it is.

Copyright © 2007 The Seattle Times Company

Leonard Pitts Jr. / Syndicated columnist: A tragic clash of cultures

Charles Krauthammer / Syndicated columnist: Tuesday's election shoots down the myth of a political realignment

Leonard Pitts Jr. / Syndicated columnist: Prosecutor's fishing trip blocks justice for man behind bars

Advertising

Video

Ken Auletta talks about "Googled"
Ken Auletta talks about Google with Brier Dudley at the Seattle Central Library.

Medal of Honor
Pelosi answers questions at Swedish Medical Center
Pelosi speaks at Swedish Medical Center
"Pistol" Pete Ryan
Mourners gather at KeyArena for slain officer's memorial
Procession for slain SPD officer
Election Night: Approve R-71
Election Night: Reject R-71
Election Night: Joe Mallahan

Marketplace

nwautos

2009's most fuel-efficient sedansnew
Choosing a new sedan? Weigh the impact of your choice on your wallet and on the planet.
Post a comment

Open Houses

Find this weekend's open house listings.
Or search by location:

 
Most read
Most commented
Most e-mailed
 
 
Advertising