If you find using the Freedom of Information Act daunting, try this open government tool conceived by journalist Michael Morisy and start-up guru Mitchell Kotler. It will embargo a journalist's request before story publication.  

The vote came on an amendment by Rep. Tom Cole (R-OK) to the defense authorization bill, in response to a draft executive order from President Obama that would require federal contractors to disclose their campaign contributions. The matter remains unresolved.

Washington Post reporter Ed O'Keefe reports that White House negotiators from both parties substantially slashed the Electronic Government Fund which "helps finance government sites that track federal data, government contracting, government information technology and overall performance."

In a court agreement filed May 22, 2011, University of Virginia agreed to release documents of former U.Va. researcher/climate scientist Michael Mann. The plaintiff is American Tradition Institute, which raises funds with the slogan "Crush Gang Green and their anti-business allies."

A World Health Organization panel finds cell phone radiation might present a cancer risk , and spotlights ongoing reluctance by the Federal Communications Commission to share publicly all the health information it has on the subject — and possible complicity with industry in hushing the research.