For Immediate Release
Sept. 29, 2022
KXAN and Corpus Christi Caller-Times win 2022 Spirit of FOI Awards
AUSTIN – Two Texas news organizations that scrutinized government programs using transparency laws and in-depth analysis have won this year’s Spirit of FOI Awards presented by the Freedom of Information Foundation of Texas.
KXAN in Austin and the Corpus Christi Caller-Times were honored Thursday at the FOI Foundation’s state conference in Austin. The Nancy Monson Spirit of FOI Award highlights journalism that upholds First Amendment rights and promotes or uses open government laws.
“We congratulate these news organizations for keeping a close watch on government and holding it accountable. The public needs this kind of reporting. It’s the role of journalists to seek information and ask questions on behalf of the people,” said Kelley Shannon, executive director of the FOI Foundation of Texas.
The Corpus Christi Caller-Times, winner in the Class A category for news markets under 500,000 population, reported on efforts to defund the lauded Sea Turtle Science Program at Padre Island National Seashore.
The Spirit of FOI contest judge praised the Caller-Times for exposing “what appears to be a deliberate step to undermine a program benefiting the endangered species.”
An investigative team at KXAN, winner in the Class AA category for news markets of 500,000 and over, examined the backlog of people found mentally incompetent to stand trial who are waiting in Texas jails to get treatment at a state hospital. Specific data on these individuals could reduce the backlog, but KXAN discovered many critical details are not tracked. The journalists nailed down information and created a portion of the waitlist database themselves.
“We’re fortunate that someone is watching the people who should be watching,” the contest judge said. He called it “an excellent example of what happens when the state tells you it has no way to track what you’re looking for – build your own database.”
KXAS of Dallas-Fort Worth received honorable mention in the Class AA category for using public records to reveal how criminals turned Texas’ temporary license plates into a $200 million black market industry. The criminals were aided by a lack of state government oversight.
The Nancy Monson Spirit of FOI Award is named for the FOI Foundation’s first executive director. The contest is open to Texas newspaper, broadcast and online journalism outlets. Founded in 1978, the nonprofit FOI Foundation promotes open government and protects the First Amendment rights of free speech and free press.
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Contact:
Kelley Shannon
Executive Director, FOI Foundation of Texas
[email protected]