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So How Did George W. Bush Celebrate
Sunshine Week? Sorry, That's Classified
by Susan Tallant
Too much secrecy. Too few accessible documents. Too many elected officials hiding their motives and their actions and their world-changing decisions from the people they were elected to serve.
Oh, and a threat to press freedom as palpable as the tornadoes the forecasters breathlessly proclaimed could strike at any minute.
Pete Weitzel's speech April 13 at Fort Worth SPJ's First Amendment Awards and Scholarship Dinner had it all, and if he didn't scare you, there was always the weather. Outside, powerful winds were tearing through Haltom City just a few miles west of the banquet site, Cacharel in Arlington. Inside, thoughts centered on concerns of a different sort.
"The fight for open government is a contest between competing values," said Weitzel, a former managing editor of The Miami Herald who helped launch the National Freedom of Information Coalition and served as its second president. "We are going to have to remain vigilant and proactive. The alternative is greater government secrecy. That would be disastrous for us as journalists and for our country."
Weitzel, now FOI coordinator of the Coalition of Journalists for Open Government, told the SPJ members, award winners and guests that there is strong sentiment in the administration, supported by conservative voices in Congress, to take action against those who leak information. But he also said the media are more united than ever on open government issues.
He referenced recent bill amendments that would criminalize the leaking and publishing of classified information and said the whole issue of leaks is both fascinating and dangerous.
"What's important to remember and to explain to the American people is that leaking serves to level the Washington playing field, which would otherwise be even more heavily slanted in favor of any incumbent administration," he said.
This incumbent administration, he noted, has opposed four bills that would strengthen the Freedom of Information Act. "That opposition isn't really surprising. This is an administration that came into office determined to tightly control the flow of information."
Weitzel became involved in freedom-of-information issues with the Florida Society of Newspaper Editors. He chaired FSNE's Freedom of Information Committee for 15 years and in 1984 helped found the Florida First Amendment Foundation, serving as president its first 11 years.
He has seen government secrecy in many forms, but never before the number of officials who use private e-mail accounts to conduct government business so the conversation is never part of the official archive.
"There's been an explosion in the classification of information," he said, "to the point where even those in the business of secrecy say it's gone too far and become counterproductive. And it is damaging to our security."
Thousands of people in government have the rank to classify information, but audits show one-third of these experts are not doing their job properly. Also, Weitzel said, the three million other government officials who make secondary decisions take the information from the already classified documents and incorporate it into a new document.
"Imagine how many times they get it wrong," he said.
The AP recently reported that more than a million documents have been removed from the national archives since 2001 in response to a Justice Department directive. Weitzel painted a picture: a stack as tall as the Capitol dome. "We've seen a great explosion in pseudo-classification," he said.
In closing, he urged the journalists in the room to tell the open government story. He said many of the nation's media organizations are aggressively engaging open governement issues.
And for that, he said, "we can thank the Bush administration."
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PEOPLE & PLACES
The TCU Board of Trustees has approved tenure for Schieffer School of Journalism faculty Julie O'Neil and Amiso George. O'Neil also was promoted and joins George as an associate professor. ...
In addition to being named the best daily college newspaper in the state by the Texas Associated Press Managing Editors, The Shorthorn web site took first place recently in the Region 8 SPJ Mark of Excellence Awards. Among the UT Arlington students involved: Dominic Bracco, Mark Roberts, Samantha Nhema, Alicia Kania, Isaac Erickson, Tracie Morales, Heather Ann White and Princess McDowell. ...
For the second time in three years, the Society of American Business Editors and Writers has honored the Star-Telegram business section for excellence among newspapers with circulations of 250,000-350,000. The judges cited the paper's stories on RadioShack CEO Dave Edmondson misrepresenting academic credentials on his résumé and on the negotiations to change the Wright Amendment. And for the second year in a row, Mitchell Schnurman was lauded as a top business columnist. ...
Quorum Architects, an architectural and interior design firm, has hired the Balcom Agency to develop a branding campaign complete with product name, logo, tagline and creative platform, as well as a PR program to celebrate the firm's 15th anniversary this month. Quorum clients in the retail, corporate, medical, government and industrial sectors include Fossil, the United States Postal Service, Range Resources, the Army and Air Force Exchange Service, Tarrant County College District, Acme Brick and HealthSouth Corp. ...
Nelson Plant Food, which makes custom-mix fertilizer, has selected the Hondo Group to provide market analysis, sales organization and PR services. Julie and Dean Nelson founded the company in 1983 to develop and distribute quality fertilizer products in a limited market segment. The company has a presence in retail stores and with landscapers and growers throughout the Southeast. Meanwhile, just a road trip away, Badger Veterinary Hospital, an equine and small animal clinic in Janesville, Wis., has selected the Hondo Group to provide marketing and PR, including strategic planning and collateral design. The veterinary hospital will be assisted out of the Hondo Group's new Midwest office.
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GET A JOB
The Fort Worth Museum of Science and History seeks a public affairs director. Requirements include a bachelor's degree in marketing, journalism, PR, public affairs, advertising or related field and 5-7 years of experience, preferably with a museum. Go here for more info. ...
The Marketing Department, a full-service marketing agency headquartered in Dallas, is looking for freelancers in print and web design, client services and web programming. Send an e-mail with qualifications to contactus@getsizzle.com. ...
C. Pharr & Co. in Addison seeks contract freelance assistance with several business-to-business projects, 20-30 hours a week total. At least three years agency or corporate PR or business journalism experience required, with experience in trade media relations and writing for technical, technology or industrial companies preferred. Must have home-office e-mail and internet connectivity and be able to work independently. Send background and salary requirements to cynthia@pharrpr.com. ...
Night Vision Systems in Dallas has a temporary position for a detail-orientated person with writing experience to help with trade show coordination, PR and channel management. Job requires travel and could extend through the end of the year. Submit a résumé, salary requirements and writing samples to marketing director Cindy Zebroski, 972-559-3239, czebroski@nightvisionsystems.com.
