In the face of doubt, openness prevails: Final assessment of a social question related to the Obama administration’s policy of transparency.
By Isaac Viel
13/March/2009
Project Background: Assigned to me Winter term of 2009 in an experimental class at the University of Oregon School of Journalism and Communication named ‘Gateway’ was a research project to be generated from one simple social question. The question could be of my own choosing; however, it had to relate to the newly-elected Barack Obama and just one of his many campaign and/or inauguration promises. I chose to research transparency in the federal government to subsequently answer the question of whether or not President Obama’s promises for a more open and transparent government were well-founded and beneficial to the American public and world at large. The research throughout this project reflects my drive to answer my own should question. From various angles and media sources I set out to find a definite answer, and I did.
Official Social Question: Should the Obama administration implement a strong policy of openness and transparency?
Explanation: During his many campaign stops, speeches and debates, Barack H. Obama promised to usher in a new era of the Executive Branch—one that would be more open, more transparent and held more accountable by the public to which they serve.
In his Jan. 20, 2009 inauguration speech, Obama said, “And those of us who manage the public’s dollars will be held to account—to spend wisely, reform bad habits, and do our business in the light of day—because only then can we restore the vital trust between a people and their government.” It was this quote that thrust my research forward.
Obama’s promise came at time when the very roots of democracy were threatened and the structural walls of American society were crumbling due to the outgoing Bush Administration’s tight-fisted approach toward freedom of information and expediency of public documents.
Argument for transparency in government: Associate Professor in the Department of Political Science at the University of Kansas Erik Herron defines transparency as the ability of citizens to obtain freely information about their elected and unelected officials allowing for democracy.
At the very root of democracy is the Freedom of Information Act, which was enacted in 1966 by Lyndon Johnson and [“Generally”] states that any person has the right, by law and enforceable in court, to whole or partial federal documents and records with the exception of those records protected by one of now nine exceptions. The act was put in place to protect the public with the notion that a properly functioning democracy requires openness and transparency.
To further the idea that freedom of information and its importance to American society is Larry Coonrod, Editor in Chief of the South Lincoln County News, who said in an interview, “Public documents are the foundation for democracy.” But simply being open does nothing unless everyone understands what openness achieves.
The ability of anyone to gain access to decisions, meetings, spending records, and budgets creates trust between the public and public officials. When trust is lost, cloaked in secrecy or betrayed outright it’s not easily regained. In order for Obama to gain back the trust that has been lost during the last decade or so, he must implement a policy of openness to act as a disinfectant according to Supreme Court Justice Louis Brandeis who once argued, “sunlight is said to be the best of disinfectants.”
I am not alone in wanting to “disinfect” the federal government. In fact, on Nov. 12, 2008, 60 public advocacy groups, working together, released a memorandum to Barack Obama (post election and pre-inauguration) urging him to reopen access to government documents in order to restore the much-derogated trust in public officials. I have also discovered that letting sunshine bathe our government officials can accomplish more than simply gaining the public’s trust.
The result of transparency is far-reaching. Besides the obvious benefits, there are some not so obvious benefits. On a macroeconomic scale, the World Trade Organization found, through empirical data, that governmental non-transparency has an adverse effect on foreign investments to that country. On a smaller microeconomic scale, author and business coach John-Paul Micek insists that transparency through the use of new media can help further the success of individual businesses.
Ensuing public access to documents and government openness is crucial for a healthy democracy, and thus keeping it congruent with emerging new media and technologies is equally as important. In a video released by the New America Foundation, technology and political pundits discuss the necessity of updating the government guarantying the public has a more efficient way of becoming well informed.
Becoming well informed, however, only goes so far to establishing a true democracy. To fulfill the promise of democracy, both Mick Masnick from Tech Dirt and Associate Professor at the American University Washington College of Law Amanda Frost agree that the ability to participate and gain access to lawmaking process, once informed, is the keystone of transparency. Shockingly, some disagree with open government.
To the average citizen, the prospect of transparency and access to public records is vital for keeping governments honest, efficient and free from corruption. An article in the Oklahoman newspaper covers a business advocacy group that argued against the public’s right to know, citing that the public’s knowledge of tax credits to local businesses is detrimental. Yale Professor and guest author for the popular blog Freakonomics Ian Ayers argues for less transparency in order to sometimes serve the public by offing to take away the right of candidates to know where monetary contributions come from thus reducing politician’s desires to pander only to specific people or groups. To a lesser extent, National President of the Public Relations Student Society of America Brandi Boatner, in an interview, offered that Obama does not need an official policy as long as he remains honest.
In conclusion, I feel strongly that the Obama Administration must implement and maintain a policy of openness and transparency for the sake of restoring public trust and reducing government inefficiency, bureaucracy and corruption. All policies and policymaking encompassing economic, heath care, national security, budgetary et al must be created and executed as visibly as technologically possible. We, as citizens of the United States have a guaranteed right to know how those who represent us, including private, non-elected, contractors, are accounting for everyone’s interests. We have the right know how tax money is being spent. This right to know has a root that has grown very deeply into the foundation our society and plays the most vital role in a healthy democracy.
Comprehensive source note list:
(SA1) Obama Inaugural Speech: Journalistic 1, Multimedia 1
(SA2) The Freedom of Information Act: Institutional 1
(SA3) Memorandum for the Heads of Executive Departments and Agencies: Institutional 2
(SA4) BBC News: Obama pledges new ‘era of openness’: Journalistic 2, Multimedia 2
(SA5) Never before seen angle of the presidential inauguration: Journalistic 3, Image 1
(SA6) What is Government Transparency?: Academic 1
(SA7) Without access to policy making, transparency serves only as an “empty right”: Academic 2
(SA8) RE: The Freedom of Information Act: Institutional 3
(SA9) More People See Federal Government as Secretive; Nearly All Want to Know Where Candidates Stand on Transparency: Institutional 4, Image 2
(SA10) The Impact of Transparency on Foreign Direct Investment: Institutional 5
(SA11) The President Orders Transparency: Journalistic 4
(SA12) Taxpayer Transparency Act opposed by State Chamber: Journalistic 5
(SA13) Government Transparency via Open Data and Open Source: Citizen 1, Image 3
(SA14) Transparency via GAO, Academia: Citizen 2
(SA15) Who’s Against Transparency in Government? A Guest Post: Citizen 3
(SA16) New executive order means more secrecy: Institutional 6
(SA17) (SA17) Secrecy Report Card 2008: Institutional 7, Image 4
(SA19) Clinton WH vets doubt Obama openness vow: Journalistic 6
(SA20) Wiki White House Can Obama Use Technology to Transform Government?: Institutional 8, Multimedia 3
(SA21) “Public documents are the foundation for democracy.” Interview with Larry Coonrod: Citizen 5, Interview 1
(SA22) No policy needed. Interview with PRSSA National President Brandi Boatner: Citizen 6, Interview 2
(SA23) Mike Luckovich cartoon: Journalistic 7, Image 5
(SA24) Let there be light: Academic 3
(SA25) Due Process: The Freedom of Information Act: Journalistic 8, Multimedia 4
(SA26) Sunshine Laws should be updated for an e-world: Academic 4
(SA27) Bush Backtracks on Transparency: Academic 5
(SA28) Headzup: Freedom Of Information No More: Citizen 7, Multimedia 5
(SA29) When Transparency Kills: A Lesson From Barack Obama: Citizen 8, Multimedia 6
(SA30) “Government transparency and freedom of information … is absolutely essential in a democracy”: Citizen 9, Interview 3
