The Marshall Project – “Child welfare agencies often relied on flawed drug tests administered at childbirth to report tens of thousands of new parents to law enforcement. In New York, guards who brutalized prisoners or covered it up were rarely fired. And at least 50 people died while being treated behind bars by a for-profit health care company whose practices endangered those with mental illness. Without public records, uncovering the facts behind these stories would never have happened. In some cases, reporters from The Marshall Project spent over a year getting the government to turn over key documents. They have also gone to great lengths to scrutinize records, which at times were missing pieces or outright inaccurate. Reporters here and across the nation routinely request public records to illuminate systemic failings, abuse and corruption across all levels of government. They do so under a federal law known as the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) or state open records laws. All 50 states have a version of FOIA, sometimes called Right to Know or Sunshine laws.

FOIA laws vary by jurisdiction, but generally anything written or recorded, including public employee salaries, government contracts and agency policies, are open public records. Even emails between officials can be released in some cases. Other documents, like records from an active criminal investigation, are often closed. Records can come in different formats, from hard copies to spreadsheets and videos. Media outlets, including The Marshall Project, have gone to court to force agencies to comply with open records laws. However, FOIA isn’t just for journalists. While rules vary across states, almost anyone can file a public records request….Information revealed by records can raise awareness — and prompt change, from new laws to the launching of investigations.”…

See also EFF – Recognizing the Worst in Government Transparency – “For the last six years, a class of journalism students at the University of Nevada, Reno, has kicked off each semester by filing their first Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) requests. The assignment: Request copies of complaints sent to the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) about their favorite TV show, a local radio station, or a major broadcast event, such as the Grammys or the Super Bowl halftime show. The students are learning that the federal government and every state have laws establishing the public’s right to request and receive public records. It’s a bedrock principle of democracy: If a government belongs to the people, so do its documents. In the past, the FCC always provided records within a few weeks, if not days. But that changed in September when students requested consumer complaints filed against NPR and PBS stations to see if there was absolutely anything at all to merit defunding public media. Seven months later — crickets…”