On March 14 the Newseum in Washington is holding a conference to mark National Freedom of Information Day. The event will help launch Sunshine Week in Washington D.C, March 16-22, 2014,
“The annual conference, which also commemorates the March 16 birth date of President James Madison, author of the First Amendment, is conducted in partnership with the American Library Association, OpenTheGovernment.org and the Reporters Committee for Freedom of the Press.
I hope it gets a LOT of attention and ideas flow from it. Although I have never sent in a FOIA request, I find it so often in my reading that I can’t help but acknowledge the profound affect it has had on historical studies.
We have lost Washington’s Birthday, so perhaps we can mourn that loss with a Madison birthday that has real meaning.