donal brown

Court rules campaign for California’s Prop. 8 prohibiting same-sex marriage does not have to reveal memos

Citing First Amendment concerns, a federal appeals court ruled that backers of Proposition 8 banning same-sex marriage do not have to give up campaign strategy documents. Prop. 8 opponents had tried to gain access to internal memos and e-mails to show that the campaign exploited prejudice against gays and lesbians. –DB San Francisco Chronicle December 12, 2009 Chronicle Staff Report SAN FRANCISCO — A federal appeals court in San Francisco has reversed a judge’s order

Read More »

Obama administration unveils 20 open government initiatives for federal agencies

The Obama administration announced that each of 20 federal agencies would provide an initiative to open government records to the public helping to fulfill an inaugural address promise for greater transparency in the federal government. -DB Reporters Committee for Freedom of the Press December 10, 2009 By Miranda Fleschert Each of the 20 cabinet departments has unveiled a new open government initiative in response to the directive issued Tuesday by the Obama administration, the White House

Read More »

Watchdog group seeks access to long sought White House visitor logs

Judicial Watch is suing the Secret Service for access to unreleased visitor legs requested under the Freedom of Information Act. The government cited national security concerns for some of the logs. -DB Reporters Committee for Freedom of the Press December 10, 2009 By Miranda Fleschert Mere weeks after the White House began publishing select visitor logs online, the conservative watchdog group Judicial Watch has sued the U.S. Secret Service for access to still-unreleased visitor logs

Read More »

England considering changes in libel laws

British lawmakers are conducting hearings and proposing legislation concerning their libel laws considered  to strongly favor those bringing defamation suits and consequently hazardous to free speech. -DB The New York Times December 11, 2009 By Sarah Lyall LONDON — England has long been a mecca for aggrieved people from around the world who want to sue for libel. Russian oligarchs, Saudi businessmen, multinational corporations, American celebrities — all have made their way to London’s courts, where

Read More »

Federal shield bill for reporters passes major hurdle

The Senate Judiciary Committee voted to send the federal media shield bill to the full Senate after months of debate and amendments. The contentious issue of whether bloggers and other citizen journalists will be covered by the bill has yet to be determined. -DB Reporters Committee for Freedom of the Press December 10, 2009 By Cristina Abello The Senate Judiciary Committee today voted to present the federal media shield bill to the full Senate, a

Read More »