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Court rules FOIA does not apply to Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac

donal brown August 8, 2011

A District of Columbia court ruled that Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac do not have to release records of their political contributions under the Freedom of Information Act. Although both mortgage companies were under the conservatorship of the Federal Housing Finance Agency during the economic crisis, the agency did not ask for records of the donations. The court concluded that since Fannie and Freddie are private companies, the FOIA cannot be used to obtain information

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Country singer sues National Enquirer for defamation

donal brown August 8, 2011

Country singer Mindy McCready filed a lawsuit against the National Enquirer alleging that it published false statements about her and her custody fight for her five-year-old son. Writes Tim Kenneally in The Wrap, “In the suit, McCready (born Malinda Gayle McCready) cites a June 2011 article published first on the Enquirer’s website and then in the print edition, which claimed, among other things, that McCready had failed eight court-ordered drug tests, had failed to show

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California: Redding City Council faulted on open meetings

donal brown August 8, 2011

A watchdog group has alleged that the Redding City Council violated the Brown Act, California’s open meeting law, by not reporting on decisions made during a closed session on July 19. The Marking a Difference for Shasta group said the council failed to report decisions on an electric utility lawsuit and a civic center lease. The city attorney denied the council had erred in reporting results of closed sessions but also said the council will

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Associated Press wins First Amendment Award

FAC August 8, 2011

For its ambitious use of freedom of information laws to generate high impact news stories, the Associated Press has won the 2011 Eugene S. Pulliam First Amendment Award. In a press release, the AP said it filed more than 1,000 public records requests in 2010 and 60 legal appeals of rejections. In 2009, the AP filed more than 1,500  requests and made 40 appeals. The award, which carries a $10,000 prize, is sponsored by the

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