FOI Info and Upcoming Events

Sept. 25, 2007

By Gil Thelen

The Brechner Center for Freedom of Information at UF had a gala two-day celebration of its 30th anniversary this month. The robust turnout, along with the work of the Governor’s Commission on Open Government, signal the vigor of FOI work in the state. A particular highlight was the announcement of the “The Brechner Top 30,” the top 30 newspaper stories from the past 30 years whose investigations were based on public records. The full-length articles and related materials are available here. It’s worth your time.

FSNE’s FOI committee is reconstituted under the leadership of Pat Yack of Jacksonville and Cory Lancaster of Daytona Beach. The committee is assembling testimony for presentation to the Open Government Commission at its next meeting in Orlando Oct. 16-17. NOTE: meeting has been rescheduled for Nov. 27-28. FSNE’s priorities are access, fees for searches and secrecy. Please help the committee and the cause of openness by contacting FSNE with your stories.

If you have encountered a problem concerning access, you can email your note to: Bob Shaw, board member FAF and state/nation editor, Orlando Sentinel, 407-420-5196 or Robyn Tomlin, FSNE board member; executive editor, Ocala Star-Banner, (352) 671-6405.

If you have encountered a problem concerning big fees, you can email your note to: Manny Garcia, assistant managing editor/metro, Miami Herald, 305-376-3445; or Mike Connelly, board member of FSNE and FAF; executive editor, Sarasota Herald-Tribune, 941-361-4991; or Kate Marymont, executive editor, (Fort Myers) News-Press, 239-335-0280.

If you have encountered a problem concerning secret meetings or documents, you can email your note to: Cory Lancaster, managing editor, Daytona Beach News-Journal, 386-681-2440 or Robyn Tomlin, FSNE board member; executive editor, Ocala Star-Banner, 352- 671-6405.

FSNE’s training schedule is a full one. More than 70 journalists are signed up for the Central Florida Multimedia Workshop Oct. 13. If you haven’t made arrangements for this low cost training, do so now. Slots are quickly filling. Detailed descriptions of the course offerings are at www.fsne.org and www.flpress.com. Information on the Dec. 1 South Florida Multimedia Workshop will be available in early October.

Registration is under way for the multimedia Newstrain program in Tampa Nov. 2-3. Featured speakers are Michael Roberts, deputy managing editor for staff development at The Arizona Republic, Jody Brannon, Senior Editor, MSN.com., Bob Steele, The Nelson Poynter Scholar for Journalism Values and the Senior Faculty in Ethics at The Poynter Institute and Terry Eberle, executive editor, Florida Today. Program highlights include leading change, news and info on the web, coaching writers, online story forms, multimedia story planning, working in teams, editing blogs, using databases effectively. The training is available to journalism students as well as working professionals. For more information go to www.newstrain.org. You can sign up there or at www.flpress.com. Newstrain is co-sponsored by FSNE and FPA.

On Friday, Oct. 12, the Orlando Sentinel will host an “Advanced Business Writing” seminar presented by the Donald W. Reynolds National Center for Business Journalism. This free, daylong seminar features top-flight instruction on the craft of business writing and includes an opportunity for one-on-one coaching. It’s open to current business writers as well as to reporters on other beats who might want to learn more about business writing. Click here for all the details, including online registration. Registration closes Oct. 5. The Sentinel contact is Dana Eagles.