At some point, some open records requests cross the line between legitimate political pressure into something poisonous. In the name of academic freedom and fairness to individuals and the democratic process, we call on the Republican Party of Wisconsin to back off its open records campaign against Cronon. And we extend the same request to Democrats and their allies.Wisconsin State Journal city editor Phil Brinkman suggests we not worry about open records requests, only about the information they produce. He writes that exercising one?s right to find out what government is up to is always legitimate. We entirely agree. But we do not agree that every janitor, school teacher, police officer and college professor is part of “the government.” Open records laws are a mechanism for keeping power accountable; in a democracy, public officials have special responsibilities.
Office of Strategic Communication