Publication Items

Press, Public Thirsty for Information, But Agencies Turning Off Spigot [1]

People care about the information they get. But the public isn’t getting what it needs from federal and state agencies where, during crisis events and day-to-day operations, agencies work harder at controlling the information that reaches the public than they do at gathering and making it available. Read more from SEJ President Don Hopey.

SEJ Publication Types:
SEJ Presidents Report [2]
Topics on the Beat:
Environmental Politics [3]
Journalism & Media [4]
People & Population [5]
Visibility:
Public [6]
- Read more about Press, Public Thirsty for Information, But Agencies Turning Off Spigot [1]
SEJournal Spring 2014, Vol. 24 No. 1 [7]

In this issue: SEJ prez Hopey on access issues; ways climate will make news in 2014; Ken Ward Jr. on the art of covering the WV MCHM spill; local meetups bring networking home; getting the most from conferences; teaching news innovation; how good audio gives life to your enviro storytelling; Q&A with "Last Ocean" author John Weller; book reviews; and the annual Sundance Festival review.

SEJ Publication Types:
SEJournal Online [8]
Topics on the Beat:
Journalism & Media [4]
Visibility:
Public [6]
- Read more about SEJournal Spring 2014, Vol. 24 No. 1 [7]
Calls for More Sunshine Strike Wide Media Response [9]

An extensive Associated Press analysis of Freedom of Information Act performance, based on legally required FOIA reports and statistics, was just one of many this week. Other Sunshine Week coverage also tried to take a broad view of how the federal government was doing on the openness front. Spoiler alert: not so good.

SEJ Publication Types:
WatchDog TipSheet [10]
Topics on the Beat:
Government [11]
Journalism & Media [4]
Visibility:
Public [6]
- Read more about Calls for More Sunshine Strike Wide Media Response [9]
J-Groups Seek Coalition To Address Press-Office Obstacles [12]

Some major U.S. journalism organizations are increasingly fed up with federal public affairs offices acting "more like prison guards than gate-keepers." The latest outbreak of frustration was at a March 19, 2014, panel discussion at the National Press Club in Washington, DC. Read comments by panelists — who agreed that the situation would not get better without organized and creative pushback from journalists.

SEJ Publication Types:
WatchDog TipSheet [10]
Topics on the Beat:
Government [11]
Journalism & Media [4]
Visibility:
Public [6]
- Read more about J-Groups Seek Coalition To Address Press-Office Obstacles [12]
SEJ Asks "Who's in Charge?" at EPA [13]

It was a crisis. Charleston, WV, residents had just been told not to drink city water because of a chemical spill upstream of its intake. It would seem routine to call the US EPA and ask for information or comment — and that's just what prize-winning Charleston Gazette reporter Ken Ward Jr. did. He waited a week for EPA to get back to him on the record. SEJ wants to know why such communication delays at EPA have become the norm.

SEJ Publication Types:
WatchDog TipSheet [10]
Topics on the Beat:
Environmental Politics [3]
Journalism & Media [4]
Visibility:
Public [6]
- Read more about SEJ Asks "Who's in Charge?" at EPA [13]
Sunshine Week 2014: Hard Fight for Open Government Far from Won [14]

Spin control and the security state may have taken large bites out of the First Amendment in recent years, but the pushback celebration known as Sunshine Week has never been more robust. Pushing for open government is a trend. Nowhere is this more true than on the environment and energy beats.

SEJ Publication Types:
WatchDog TipSheet [10]
Topics on the Beat:
Energy & Fuel [15]
Environmental Politics [3]
Journalism & Media [4]
Visibility:
Public [6]
- Read more about Sunshine Week 2014: Hard Fight for Open Government Far from Won [14]
Legal Battle Looms on Drone Newsgathering [16]

Will the Federal Aviation Administration make drone journalism illegal? The first answer is likely to come soon. Connecticut journalist Pedro Rivera filed suit February 18, 2014, against Hartford police officers who he said violated his First Amendment rights to gather news.

SEJ Publication Types:
WatchDog TipSheet [10]
Topics on the Beat:
Journalism & Media [4]
Technology [17]
Visibility:
Public [6]
- Read more about Legal Battle Looms on Drone Newsgathering [16]
Finding Funders: A User’s Guide to Foundation-Backed Journalism [18]

Public radio journalist Karen Schaefer shares how she pursued and won a grant, bumps in the road she overcame, lessons learned, and tips for unearthing funders. Photo: Schaefer on the job at a cow barn at Vander Made Farms near Sherwood, Ohio. Photo by Chris Kick, Farm and Dairy.

SEJ Publication Types:
Freelance Files [20]
Topics on the Beat:
Journalism & Media [4]
Visibility:
Public [6]
- Read more about Finding Funders: A User’s Guide to Foundation-Backed Journalism [18]
Photog Claims Damages from CalTrans, CHP for Arrest, False Report [21]

The California Highway Patrol lied in reports when it violated the First Amendment rights of news photographer Steve Eberhard of the Willitts News by illegally arresting him to intimidate newsgatherers at a protest site in July 2013, Eberhard says in a legal claim against CHP and Caltrans.

SEJ Publication Types:
WatchDog TipSheet [10]
Topics on the Beat:
Laws & Regulations [22]
Journalism & Media [4]
Region:
California [23]
Visibility:
Public [6]
- Read more about Photog Claims Damages from CalTrans, CHP for Arrest, False Report [21]
FAA Nixes Drones for Journos [24]

Drones might count as new media — and certainly have journalistic uses in covering everything from prairie fires to chemical emergencies. The federal government, which devotes enormous technical resources to spying on its citizens, now says this is illegal. The Federal Aviation Administration issued the ruling, saying there was no grey area: hobbyists can legally fly video drones. But journalists can not. Image: Cade Cleavelin, a science/ag journalism senior at U of Missouri, demonstrates a DJY Phantom quadcopter at the 2013 SEJ Conference in Chattanooga, TN. © Roger Archibald.

SEJ Publication Types:
WatchDog TipSheet [10]
Topics on the Beat:
Technology [17]
Laws & Regulations [22]
Journalism & Media [4]
Government [11]
Visibility:
Public [6]
- Read more about FAA Nixes Drones for Journos [24]

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