Media Law - Freedom of Information

Freedom of Information Act 2000

Statue – requires all public funded bodies (not private)

-          Must publish documentation on demand

-          Must publish the schedule of information they have

-          Must give in a reasonable time (approx within 20 days to reply to the initial request)

National security matter won’t be digressed, neither will military.

The Business of Freedom

A key figure, Matt Davis has made FOI his business.  He runs a news agency DataNews, which relies alone on FOI researches.

In a press conference attended by the Press Gazette in February 2009, Davis suggested that the BBC would suffer cuts due to their spending being released.   When the accommodation for the world cup in Germany was made public - £1.6m, a small fortune; or the Christmas party in 2007, at £50 a head (with a total bill of £250,000), it’s more than obvious that someone was going to be unhappy that their license fee was spent in that way.  Davis credits the FOI Act for lowering the Christmas party to £25 a head the following year.

It wouldn’t be a surprise if the BBC tried to fight FOI and initially it seems they did, refusing requests on the exemption of ‘journalistic, artistic or literature’ reasons.  However, they finally embraced the idea, setting up a specific team to deal with the questions.

FOI Requests

-          Has to be simple

-          Write to the council, to the information officer of whatever body you wish to contact

Although the law has meant much wider access to information, there can be delays in requests.  The government can refuse or delay requests if it is best for them.  Be sure to simplify the request of information, so it can’t be deemed too expensive to find out the information.  It can also take time to be given the information you’re trying to find out, so planning ahead is best.  Even though FOI does reap its rewards, Jeremy Hayes suggests that costs and time limits could lower the amount of research by newsrooms.   

Does the public really need to know?

I must be honest; I don’t like being kept out of the loop.  If something is worth knowing, I want to know it and I appreciate that FOI has brought things to light that the public should know.  For instance, I would want to know the MP expenses scandal.  If an MP claims for a second house that’s 100 miles from their constituency or claims for lightbulb replacement, it’s in the public interest that these ones should not go unnoticed.  As a result of publicising the expenses (through the original FOI requests made in 2005 by The Sunday Telegraph), MPs will have to closely watch their claims, knowing they cannot claim for mole control; which in turn tightens government spending.

Even so, there are SOME things I don’t particularly want to know.  I believe the Blue Peter Garden - the untouchable haven for those growing up watching the programme, doesn’t need its leaky dyke to be made public; it’s not its fault after all.