Public outcry convinces university to give public documents
After dozens of alumni, media and private citizens stepped forward over the weekend and offered to pay the $300 Northern Michigan University was charging its student newspaper for a public record request, NMU announced Monday it was waiving all fees.
Today President Fritz Erickson asked that all fees be waived and the information requested by The North Wind be provided to the student newspaper as soon as possible. The newspaper, in early December, requested emails of six administrators in regards to intimidation newspaper editors say they had experienced by administrators to stop writing certain stories and requesting public documents.
NMU has sent the requested information to its General Counsel for review, said Derek Hall, assistant vice president for Identity, Brand and Marketing. Hall said he anticipated that the newspaper would have the documents sometime Wednesday or Thursday.
The North Wind staff is overwhelmed and thankful for the outpouring of support and donations from the community, alumni, students, faculty, journalists, the Student Press Law Center, the Society of Professional Journalists (SPJ) and many others. The SPJ had originally donated the first $150 to begin the FOIA retrieval process, followed by a $100 donation from a local student run media website and $50 from local TV journalists.
—
Emma Finkbeiner can be reached at [email protected]
brad • Jan 21, 2015 at 1:34 pm
It is important for journalist to access information. In the State of the Union address the president eluded to cyber changes. One change against open journalism will be making it unlawful to “traffic” in “links”. We all copy and paste links. Journalist investigating corruption or other crimes must copy and past links as they travel mazes of information. Barrett Brown will be sentenced tomorrow. He stands to get 100 years in prison for copying and pasting a link that had already been published and the compromising financial data changed. He did this as part of his investigation into corruption. He will be another journalist-political prisoner that we never hear about. Start paying attention. The administration is using the fear of hacks (which the US cyber army also perpetrates), to remove liberties. Do not for a minute believe things are as they appear. Free Barrett Brown and do not start a “War on Links” or a “War on Copying and Pasting”. Read, learn, question and link for the truth! http://wikisend.com/download/597646/stratfor_full_b.txt.gz (#RightToLink) (#FreeBB)
TW Seed • Jan 19, 2015 at 2:08 pm
Your persistence will pay rewards and dividends. Just because the Prez is going to waive fees should not change anything. Do not get soft and let up until you have the resignation(s) of those who threatened and intimidated.
I am betting that it came from the dean of students office at the insistence of her VP who probably took direction from the Prez. I vividly recall how the lower rungs got stepped on the most.
There are changes to FOIA that take effect July 1st. Your legal counsel should provide you with a synopsis so that your successors will have them on hand.
I was going to send a donation but it appears you are good now.