We shine a light on the intersection of technology, government, media and society with research, trusted analysis, and public interest advocacy.
For the first time in over a decade, the United States Department of Justice (DOJ) celebrated Sunshine Week with a blog post, instead of a public event. In past years, a high-ranking DOJ official often the DOJ Chief FOIA Officer Continue reading
The official withdrawal of the United States from the Open Government Partnership (OGP) formalized what advocates, scholars, and watchdogs have been telling the American people from the last year: under President Trump, the executive branch of the United States government is no Continue reading
In March 2025, a coalition of organizations and individuals who work on government transparency and accountability in the United States respectfully requested the Open Government Partnership (OGP) to immediately place the United States government under review for actions contrary to the principles and policies Continue reading
On June 10, 2025, the U.S. House Transparency Caucus hosted a discussion about current issues, promising proposals, and ongoing successes in government transparency in the Rayburn building. Our founder was present to record the event and pose questions. Video is Continue reading
On April 25, 2025, the senior advisor to the acting Archivist of the United States (AOTUS) sent a memorandum to the heads of federal departments and agencies on the management responsibilities they have with respect to electronic messages that constitute Continue reading
188 years ago, President Andrew Jackson had a 1,400-pound block of cheddar cheese brought to the foyer of the White House and opened the People’s House to thousands of Americans to talk with him and his staff. That remains the Continue reading
Back in 2019, in response to a complaint filed by the Center for Biological Diversity under the Information Quality Act challenging the scientific integrity of government communications, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) claimed a blog post was not public information. “The Continue reading
This afternoon, our editor texted the following letter in response to President Joe Biden’s text about federal disaster response on Monday. The letter was drafted after the White House posted a memorandum on fighting Hurricane Helene falsehoods with facts. While Continue reading
The Open Government has not had the positive effects in the United States that people in other nations participating in the global multi-stakeholder initiative have seen because neither Congress nor the judicial branch have ever been involved. Continue reading
There are reasons to be hopeful about open government as the United States as the new year begins, but also cause for grave concern. In December 2023, researchers at the Independent Review Mechanism (IRM) of the Open Government Partnership (OGP) Continue reading