TAG / FREEDOM OF INFORMATION

After seven months of delays and repeated denials, Tyler Foster forced Memphis to comply with public records law. His win could set a precedent for greater transparency in city government.

The reform would make it a crime to delete government communications, following revelations that top officials wiped WhatsApp messages during the pandemic.

The lawsuit exposes repeated legal loopholes used by the Department of Public Safety, highlighting systemic resistance to transparency and accountability.

In the last fiscal year, Manitobans seeking information paid over $13,000 to find out what their government was up to. Fees tripled while response time compliance plunged.

AI is speeding up FOIA responses, but may also be creating legal and ethical hazards that could undermine public requests and government accountability.

Investigative journalists demand answers as officials dodge record requests on a program plagued by waste, secrecy and abuse—the very things freedom of information laws were created to uncover.

Transparency advocates say proposed FOI changes gut the public’s right to know and shield the government from scrutiny.

Saratoga Springs’ unusual prosecution underscores the importance of transparency—and the legal consequences for officials who disregard it.

Despite a half-century-old FOIA law, citizens and journalists face months—even years—of stonewalling. Watchdogs warn government secrecy in the Nutmeg State threatens accountability and democracy itself.

Austria now requires proactive disclosure of administrative documents, contracts and data after five generations of constitutionally enshrined secrecy.