National Freedom of Information Coalition

2006 FOI Summit

News from the 2006 FOI Summit

Author, advocate Charles Lewis warns that "this is not a time for timidity"

INDIANAPOLIS -- Charles Lewis is trying to think of some new words to describe the current state of information. "Scary" just doesn’t go far enough, he told journalists, educators and citizen activists gathered Friday, April 21, in Indianapolis for the 2006 Freedom of Information Summit.
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Conservatives, liberals can agree on public's right to know

INDIANAPOLIS -- For a man who describes himself as "terribly conservative" Rep. Mike Pence, R-IN, got a lot of inspiration from liberals when crafting the Free Flow of Information Act.
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Reporter follows in role model's footsteps -- all the way to war

INDIANAPOLIS -- When all the other kids in Sig Christenson's Houston neighborhood were planning on careers in medicine and engineering, he decided he wanted to be a newspaper reporter. Later he read "Brave Men," a collection of columns from World War II correspondent Ernie Pyle, and tightened his focus.
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Policy makers juggle privacy vs. public's right to know

INDIANAPOLIS -- Balancing public accountability and individual privacy is a challenge for legislators and journalists at both the state and national level.
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Patience a virtue in pursuing the document-driven story

INDIANAPOLIS -- Cost and delay are major obstacles journalists face in making records requests, but the rewards that come with tracking down a record-driven story can make it worth the pain.
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How to be a better watchdog

INDIANAPOLIS -- Joel Campbell, co-chairman of SPJ's national Freedom of Information Committee, knows what it takes to be an effective "watchdog" of government. During the National FOI Summit in Indianapolis, he shared some of his "keys" to unlocking government records.
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Accountability part of privatization discussion

INDIANAPOLIS -- Accountability and transparency are issues when a government operation is privatized, according to panelists discussing privatization trends at the 2006 Freedom of Information Summit.
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Info-hungry citizens making a difference in government openness

INDIANAPOLIS -- Ryan Nees in nine short months has grown from a precocious, 15-year-old filmmaker into an open records activist whose latest foray cost the city of Kokomo more than $11,000 this week.
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A Freedom of Information
Act Update:

Acknowledgements

The 2006 Freedom of Information Summit in Indianapolis drew nearly 200 participants. More than 40 speakers were featured at the event. Former New Jersey lawmaker Byron M. Baer also was inducted into the Open Government Hall of Fame. The award recognizes lifetime achievement and dedication to open government causes. Baer, a Democrat, served in both houses of the state Legislature. He served in the General Assembly from 1972 to 1993 and in the state Senate from 1994 to 2005, when he retired. The two-day Freedom of Information Summit concluded in April. Next year's event for citizens, activists, and journalists will take place in Seattle. The event was hosted by the Indiana Coalition for Open Government and the National Freedom of Information Coalition.

The National Freedom of Information Coalition wishes to thank: Editor-Contributor Rod Spaw (Bloomington Herald Times), Contributor Valerie Miller (University of Indianapolis), Contributor-Videographer Kristin Markway (University of Missouri) and Contributor Michael Kapellas (Indiana University) for their coverage of a sampling of panels and speakers during the 2006 Freedom of Information Summit. We are also posting articles filed by The Indianapolis bureau of The Associated Press. Their assistance in bringing our web visitors this additional information and coverage was invaluable.

A special thanks to Kyle Niederpruem for all the work she did to ensure that this year's conference was a success.