First Amendment News

CBS does not have to turn over 60 minutes interview footage in the case of Marine accused in the deaths of 24 Iraqi civilians in 2005. The judge agreed with a CBS attorney who argued that the military had not shown the information could not be obtained elsewhere or that the information was critical to their case. –DB The Reporters Committee for Freedom of the Press March 13, 2009 By Ahnalese Rushmann CBS does not

The First Circuit in Massachusetts ruled that a truthful email could be defamatory if it was sent with”actual malevolent intent or ill will.”–DB Citizen Media Law Project March 11, 2009 By Sam Bayard The Citizen Media Law Project joined numerous other media organizations and media law advocacy groups in filing an amici curiae brief on March 11 urging the U.S. Court of Appeals for the First Circuit to grant rehearing en banc in Noonan v.

A plain writing act has been introduced in both houses of Congress. The acts promote transparency by requiring clear writing in government documents. -DB Secrecy Federation of American Scientists March 12, 2009 One way “to enhance citizen access to Government information,” a new Senate bill proposes, would be to require that Government documents “must be written clearly.” By insisting on plain language in official documents, the bill “promotes transparency and accountability,” said lead sponsor Sen.

The Obama administration pledged to rigorously monitor how recovery money is spent but has not yet approached the transparency required by the program’s importance and magnitude. -DB OMB Watch March 10, 2009 Three weeks after President Barack Obama signed into law the $787 billion American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 (Recovery Act), states have begun to see federal economic stimulus funds move within their borders. Behind the hundreds of billions of dollars soon to

An open government advocate defended a school board member against censure over his critical comments only to find that the judges ruled that the district’s free speech rights trumped those of the dissident board member. -DB CalAware Today March 11, 2009 Sunshine Week (March 15-21) is a national celebration of open government, but here in California a court decision has favored the suppression of dissent and cost a long-time open government advocate $80,000. More than