Open Data: New poll results by the US Pew Foundation describe Americans’ opinions on open data. Alex Howard reported that “In general, more people surveyed are guardedly optimistic about the outcomes and release of open data, although that belief does vary with their political views, trust in government, and specific areas.”
Spain: Levels of administrative silence remained high in Spain in 2014, in the year running up to Europe’s newest transparency law coming into force, according to a report published by civil society organizations Access Info Europe and Civio.
United States: “Cybersecurity legislation advancing in Congress could create the first brand-new exemption to the Freedom of Information Act in nearly half a century—a prospect that alarms transparency advocates and some lawmakers,” according to a Politico article by Josh Gerstein.
Tanzania: A critique of the proposed Tanzanian RTI law by the Commonwealth Human Rights Initiative.
OGP: The work plan of the Open Government Partnership Access to Information Working Group.
United States: A new website, FOI Advisor, including news summaries and resources about the FOI Act has been started by attorneys Allan L. Blutstein and Kevin Schmidt.
Video: The Access Initiative in Latin America and the Caribbean (Iniciativa de Acceso en América Latina y el Caribe) has developed a new series of videos highlighting the work of TAI in Latin America and the importance of access rights. Check out the videos: What purpose do access rights serve?, What is Principle 10 of the Access Declaration? and Towards a regional convention on Principle 10 of the Rio Declaration.
Social Media: Social media pages like Facebook should be treated as public records, according to speakers at a conference in the United States.
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