National (U.S.)

The University of California "has begun withholding public records that detail how animal research is done.

Need another reason not to go through the "press office?" Try reading the transcript from the White House briefing of June 8, 2005.

A freelance journalist is challenging in court the US Department of Agriculture's efforts to keep secret its data on who owns the feedlots Americans can see and smell, but whose pollution the food industry does not want USDA to regulate.

The House Science Committee is investigating charges that a White House political arm with no scientific expertise is suppressing EPA information about the toxic risks of commercial products.

In the old days, the newsroom at most local dailies had a police scanner squawking like a nervous parrot in the background, to get the jump in case something big happened. To get environmental news today, you need other tools.

Inspection reports on badly maintained dams - or information on what homes would be swept away if they failed?

Cancer registries, which are part of the public health system help physicians collect statistics on cancer incidence and help pinpoint "cancer clusters" that may be caused by environmental factors. the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) runs a surveillance system, which has a registry of cancer cases in almost every state. But the hospitals in the federal Veterans Affairs (VA) system are now saying they will not share cancer data with state registries unless the states sign restrictive agreements.

The U.S. House of Representatives passed a bill Oct. 16, 2007, to create a federal shield law which would offer limited protection for reporters from being compelled to disclose confidential sources.

The Interior Department has proposed codifying its rules on photography, filming, and sound-recording on public lands it administers. Some newsgatherers are worried that the rules would hurt their ability to do their jobs.

It was news when the White House censored testimony prepared in October 2007 by Centers for Disease Control Director Julie Gerberding - testimony detailing the health hazards likely to result from climate change.