April 26th, 2022 • Quill Archives
Covering the Midterms
Horse race. Polls. Who said what today. Who picked up what endorsement. A soundbite. A gaffe. Even an occasional gotcha, conflict or carnal impropriety story. All expected in election coverage these days. But with control of Congress at stake, media can do much more to help voters make informed choices by probing candidates’ actions, positions, financing and misstatements.
March 9th, 2022 • Featured, Quill Archives, Freedom of Information
Declining fulfillment typifies today’s FOIA. Here’s why.
(image credit: www.epictop10.com) Many a great story has come out of Freedom of Information Act findings. At the same time, many a story doesn’t get written because the requested documents don’t arrive by deadline – if at all. And the two-year-old pandemic is worsening response times.
September 28th, 2021 • Featured, Quill Archives
Rising postal rates (again) prompt publisher concerns
It’s not as though community newspapers aren’t struggling enough these days: declining advertising and circulation, COVID-19 and increased printing costs. Now they’re dealing with another scourge — increasing postage rates. Even in this era of instant electronic access to news and hedge fund ownership of newspapers, many small American towns still depend on that locally-owned mail-delivered weekly to keep them informed of community happenings.
August 27th, 2021 • Featured, Quill Archives
Is Congress threatening press freedom by intimidating carriers?
Since government can’t censor news content, can it control it indirectly through threats and intimidation? A congressional inquiry this year led by Democrats hinted at it and attempted to examine whether conservative news media were responsible for inciting violence. The representatives said they were just asking questions.
February 10th, 2021 • Featured, Quill Blog, Quill Archives
D.C. journalism memorial takes a step forward
Presidents, soldiers who died in the line of duty, even those who gave their lives saving others on the Titanic all have been memorialized with monuments in the nation’s capital. Now, journalists killed in the line of duty may get their due too.
February 5th, 2021 • Featured, Quill Blog, Quill Archives
Righting the wrongs of copyright violation
There they are. Your words. Published by someone without your permission. Long the bane of writers, publishers and photographers; the practice has become especially common on the Internet. But if you want to collect damages, traditionally you would have to sue in federal court, a time-consuming and expensive route that can wind up not being worth the effort.
