Transparency Shouldn't Be Subject to the Whim of the Beholder

Transparency shouldn't be subject to the whim of the beholder

For 20 years, as secrecy has spread in national, state and local governments, newspapers and open-government groups have been advocating for freedom of information in an annual observance called Sunshine Week.

Sunshine Week highlights the daily fight for government transparency

#SunshineWeek is a reminder of something we in statehouse journalism already know: transparency isn’t a slogan — it’s a daily fight. Open records laws, public meetings and access to information are the tools that make accountability possible. But those tools only matter if someone is using them. That’s where local and statehouse reporters come in. They are the ones filing the requests, sitting through the hearings, asking the follow-up questions…

Shining a light on the inner workings of government is more important than ever

Sunshine week is held every year to raise awareness about open records and public access to information about government. | Graphic courtesy sunshineweek.orgDemocracy in the United States is in trouble. According to the 2026 Democracy Report, produced by thousands of scholars and experts around the world for the Varieties of Democracy Institute (V-DEM), “The speed with which American democracy is currently dismantled is unprecedented in modern h…

Sunshine Week: How public records requests increase government transparency

SOUTH BEND, Ind. -- This week is Sunshine Week in the United States, a time to shed light on government transparency and open records laws, coordinated annually by the Joseph L. Brechner Freedom of Information Project at the University of Florida College of Journalism and Communications.