donal brown

Orange County: Investigation uncovers alleged open government violations by school district

A PublicCEO reporter alleges that the Garden Grove Unified School District Board of Trustees has committed serious violations of California’s open government law, the Brown Act. -db PublicCEO Commentary February 2, 2010 By Chris Prevatt One of the most important duties for elected officials to perform is to be open and honest about their actions and to maintain their compliance with the minimal disclosure requirements of the Brown Act. It really isn’t that hard. The

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Tech companies must share burden with media companies in fighting for global Internet freedom

The Electronic Frontier Foundation cites seven corporations that should share the task with Google, Yahoo! and Microsoft in fighting for Internet freedom. The EFF points out that the companies are selling technology to the Chinese government used for spying, censorship, invading privacy, and intimidating citizens. -db Electronic Frontier Foundation Opinion February 1, 2010 By Danny O’Brien Secretary of State Hillary Clinton’s announcement of a new U.S. policy on global Internet Freedom included a bold new

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Rolling Stone Magazine wins ruling in dispute over use of image

A California appeals court dismissed a lawsuit by rock musicians against Rolling Stone over a use of their image that they said implied they sponsored a cigarette brand. The court found that the image was noncommercial speech protected by the First Amendment. -db The Reporters Committee for Freedom of the Press January 29, 2010 By Cristina Abello A California appellate court yesterday found that a lawsuit by “indie” rock musicians against Rolling Stone over a

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California’s central valley: Editorial cites disdain for Brown Act in call for action against three Highson city councilmen

An editorial in The Modesto Bee describes a mugging of the Brown Act and a general lack of civil behavior in suggesting that officials look at bringing criminal charges against three councilmen and that the public consider a recall. -db The Modesto Bee Editorial January 31, 2010 Just when we thought city politics in Hughson couldn’t get any worse, they have. Last week’s meeting provided another example where it appears that three councilmen — Thom

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Tulare County: Supervisors ‘team-building’ luncheons under scrutiny for possible open government violations

The Tulare County Board of Supervisors deny talking about county business when they meet for lunch paid for by the county, but since the meetings are not open to the public, questions remain about the purpose of the meetings and the content of the conversations. -db Visalia Times-Delta Tulare Advance-Register February 1, 2010 By Valerie Gibbons Members of the Tulare County Board of Supervisors emphatically deny they discuss county business when three or more of

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