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We're making an online push this week to increase support for the Freedom of Information Foundation of Texas and its mission of promoting the First Amendment and open government. The public's right to know is crucial to our democracy. We cannot make decisions about how we are governed and who should lead us if we don't have information about our government. The FOI Foundation of Texas is a non-profit 501(c)(3) that has been working to protect the First Amendment and the free flow of information since 1978. Please consider a tax-deductible contribution today to the FOI Foundation. You'll be helping to [...]

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE May 10, 2016 INDIANAPOLIS – The Society of Professional Journalists is pleased to honor Jerry Ceppos, Laura Prather and Don Van Natta, Jr., as Fellows of the Society. This is the highest professional honor given by the Society and is awarded for extraordinary contribution to the profession. Jerry Ceppos is currently Dean and William B. Dickinson Distinguished Professor at the Manship School of Mass Communication, Louisiana State University. Previously, he worked for the San Jose Mercury News and its owner, the Knight Ridder Inc., for 33 years. He received the SPJ Ethics in Journalism Award in 1997, the [...]

The FOI Foundation of Texas is pleased to announce 2016 guidelines for the Nancy Monson Spirit of FOI Award contest. The contest is open to newspaper, broadcast and online media. The Spirit of FOI Award recognizes outstanding work in promoting open government and the public’s right to know. The deadline for electronic submission of entries is Friday, May 6. Nominations must be for work published or broadcast in calendar year 2015. A nomination can be a single news story or series; an editorial or series of editorials; columns; editorial cartoons; or a community FOI project. There is a limit of one [...]

The FOI Foundation of Texas will hold its 2016 state conference Thursday, Sept. 8, at the AT&T Executive Education and Conference Center at the University of Texas at Austin. The annual event brings together journalists, citizen activists, attorneys and government employees to share ideas and examine the latest trends in open government and the First Amendment rights of free speech and press. The conference also features presentation of the James Madison Award to an open government advocate and the State Bar of Texas Gavel Awards to outstanding journalists. More conference details are coming soon. In the meantime, hotel rooms are available [...]