New Survey on Public and Media Interest in Government Transparency [1]

[2]The CMLP's friends at the National Freedom of Information Coalition [3] and the Media Law Resource Center [4] have just released the results [5] of a recent survey of citizen interest in government transparency and [6]the willingness of traditional media outlets to fight for access to government information.

For those of us who have been watching the sunshine scene, it will come as no surprise that traditional outlets are devoting fewer resources to accountability reporting [7], and in particular to litigating access issues.  The results of the new survey, however, illustrate the scope of that troubling trend -- especially when considered in light of a 2009 survey [8] by the NFOIC and MLRC on the same topic.

More surprising, perhaps, are the survey's results with respect to the interest and assertiveness of the public with respect to their rights to open government.  (Hint: it's good news [9].)

Thanks to the NFOIC and the MLRC for alerting us to these results.  You can read the NFOIC/MLRC press release on the survey here [5]; the press release has links to the survey results.