California First Amendment Coalition
Encyclopedia
The First Amendment Coalition (FAC) is a nonprofit public interest organization committed to freedom of speech
, more open and accountable government, and public participation in civic affairs. Founded in 1988, FAC's activities include "test case" litigation, free legal consultations on first amendment issues, educational programs, legislative oversight of bills in California affecting access to government and free speech, and public advocacy.
to force him to make public his and his staff’s calendars of appointments, pressuring state agencies to be more transparent in their decision-making, and filing lawsuits to strengthen existing protections and establish new rights of access.
Recent suits have involved public access to government databases; greater disclosure by CalPERS
(the state pension system) of its investments in hedge funds, private equity deals and other alternative investments; extending government access requirements to the California court system; and curbing agency use of the most abused FOI exemptions.
FAC's “Legal Hotline” http://www.firstamendmentcoalition.org/legal-hotline/ provides legal information and assistance to journalist
s, blog
gers, ethnic media
, and ordinary citizens. FAC's web site is a key resource for statutes, cases, “FAQs,” news and analysis on First Amendment and freedom of information issues in California. Many portions are available in Spanish and Mandarin
for use by ethnic media.
FAC conducts annual conferences with its partners the USC Annenberg School of Communication and the UC Berkeley Graduate School of Journalism. Recent speakers have included Jeffrey Toobin, Stuart Taylor, Arianna Huffington, Daniel Ellsberg, NSA General Counsel Robert Deitz, former NY Times reporter Judith Miller, First Amendment lawyer Floyd Abrams, investigative reporter Seymour Hersh
, Commentary Magazine editor Gabriel Schoenfeld, Internet journalism pioneer Dan Gillmor, and leading media lawyers from around the country. FAC has also published “The Right to Know: A Guide to Public Access and Media Law,” (2007), a comprehensive handbook on FOI, First Amendment and news-gathering law.
FAC's members are news organizations, law firms, libraries, civic organizations, academics, freelance journalists, bloggers, community activists, and ordinary citizens. Members and supporters are kept abreast of legal issues through FAC’s newsletter—a combination of original commentaries and summaries of news and legal developments—distributed to 4,000 people every two weeks. FAC’s views reach a larger audience through republication of its commentaries in newspapers across the state, as well as television and radio appearances by its executive director.
FAC is nonpartisan and politically nonideological. Membership spans the political spectrum, from liberals who worry about excessive government secrecy to conservatives who see big government as a threat to individual liberties. All support freedom from censorship
, whether from the left or the right, and government
transparency
.
The Coalition receives significant institutional support from the McCormick Foundation in Illinois, the CS Fund in California, the John S. and James L. Knight Foundation in Florida and the Central Valley Foundation in California.. FAC and Peter Scheer, its executive director, also were acknowledged both regionally and nationally through receipt of the Eugene S. Pulliam Award http://www.spj.org/a-pulliamW.asp and the James Madison Freedom of Information Award
in 2006.http://www.spj.org/norcal/2006/foi2006winners-release.htm
FAC’s Board of Directors consists of representatives of “old” media (e.g., Jerry Ceppos, former VP/News, Knight Ridder; Hal Fuson, Attorney, Former Executive Vice President, The Copley Press, Inc.), “new” media (e.g., Nicole Wong
, Associate General Counsel, Google; Dan Gillmor, Knight Center, Cronkite School of Journalism, University of Arizona, Phoenix; Evan Hansen, Executive Editor, Wired.com), as well as academics, representatives of public interest organizations, and media and First Amendment lawyers.
Freedom of speech
Freedom of speech is the freedom to speak freely without censorship. The term freedom of expression is sometimes used synonymously, but includes any act of seeking, receiving and imparting information or ideas, regardless of the medium used...
, more open and accountable government, and public participation in civic affairs. Founded in 1988, FAC's activities include "test case" litigation, free legal consultations on first amendment issues, educational programs, legislative oversight of bills in California affecting access to government and free speech, and public advocacy.
History
FAC co-authored and sponsored Proposition 59 http://www.firstamendmentcoalition.org/category/resources/prop-59/, the Sunshine Amendment to the California State Constitution, enacted by voters in 2004. FAC since then has enforced Prop. 59, suing Governor Arnold SchwarzeneggerArnold Schwarzenegger
Arnold Alois Schwarzenegger is an Austrian-American former professional bodybuilder, actor, businessman, investor, and politician. Schwarzenegger served as the 38th Governor of California from 2003 until 2011....
to force him to make public his and his staff’s calendars of appointments, pressuring state agencies to be more transparent in their decision-making, and filing lawsuits to strengthen existing protections and establish new rights of access.
Recent suits have involved public access to government databases; greater disclosure by CalPERS
CalPERS
The California Public Employees' Retirement System or CalPERS is an agency in the California executive branch that "manages pension and health benefits for more than 1.6 million California public employees, retirees, and their families"...
(the state pension system) of its investments in hedge funds, private equity deals and other alternative investments; extending government access requirements to the California court system; and curbing agency use of the most abused FOI exemptions.
FAC's “Legal Hotline” http://www.firstamendmentcoalition.org/legal-hotline/ provides legal information and assistance to journalist
Journalist
A journalist collects and distributes news and other information. A journalist's work is referred to as journalism.A reporter is a type of journalist who researchs, writes, and reports on information to be presented in mass media, including print media , electronic media , and digital media A...
s, blog
Blog
A blog is a type of website or part of a website supposed to be updated with new content from time to time. Blogs are usually maintained by an individual with regular entries of commentary, descriptions of events, or other material such as graphics or video. Entries are commonly displayed in...
gers, ethnic media
Ethnic media
- Ethnic Media :Ethnic Media is media fashioned with a particular ethnic minority group or ethnic minority community, in mind.Academic Yu Shi tenders an operational definition for ethnic media: “Ethnic media are often regarded as media by and for ethnics in a host country with content in ethnic...
, and ordinary citizens. FAC's web site is a key resource for statutes, cases, “FAQs,” news and analysis on First Amendment and freedom of information issues in California. Many portions are available in Spanish and Mandarin
Standard Mandarin
Standard Chinese or Modern Standard Chinese, also known as Mandarin or Putonghua, is the official language of the People's Republic of China and Republic of China , and is one of the four official languages of Singapore....
for use by ethnic media.
FAC conducts annual conferences with its partners the USC Annenberg School of Communication and the UC Berkeley Graduate School of Journalism. Recent speakers have included Jeffrey Toobin, Stuart Taylor, Arianna Huffington, Daniel Ellsberg, NSA General Counsel Robert Deitz, former NY Times reporter Judith Miller, First Amendment lawyer Floyd Abrams, investigative reporter Seymour Hersh
Seymour Hersh
Seymour Myron Hersh is an American Pulitzer Prize-winning investigative journalist and author based in Washington, D.C. He is a regular contributor to The New Yorker magazine on military and security matters...
, Commentary Magazine editor Gabriel Schoenfeld, Internet journalism pioneer Dan Gillmor, and leading media lawyers from around the country. FAC has also published “The Right to Know: A Guide to Public Access and Media Law,” (2007), a comprehensive handbook on FOI, First Amendment and news-gathering law.
FAC's members are news organizations, law firms, libraries, civic organizations, academics, freelance journalists, bloggers, community activists, and ordinary citizens. Members and supporters are kept abreast of legal issues through FAC’s newsletter—a combination of original commentaries and summaries of news and legal developments—distributed to 4,000 people every two weeks. FAC’s views reach a larger audience through republication of its commentaries in newspapers across the state, as well as television and radio appearances by its executive director.
FAC is nonpartisan and politically nonideological. Membership spans the political spectrum, from liberals who worry about excessive government secrecy to conservatives who see big government as a threat to individual liberties. All support freedom from censorship
Censorship
thumb|[[Book burning]] following the [[1973 Chilean coup d'état|1973 coup]] that installed the [[Military government of Chile |Pinochet regime]] in Chile...
, whether from the left or the right, and government
Government
Government refers to the legislators, administrators, and arbitrators in the administrative bureaucracy who control a state at a given time, and to the system of government by which they are organized...
transparency
Transparency (humanities)
Transparency, as used in science, engineering, business, the humanities and in a social context more generally, implies openness, communication, and accountability. Transparency is operating in such a way that it is easy for others to see what actions are performed...
.
The Coalition receives significant institutional support from the McCormick Foundation in Illinois, the CS Fund in California, the John S. and James L. Knight Foundation in Florida and the Central Valley Foundation in California.. FAC and Peter Scheer, its executive director, also were acknowledged both regionally and nationally through receipt of the Eugene S. Pulliam Award http://www.spj.org/a-pulliamW.asp and the James Madison Freedom of Information Award
James Madison Freedom of Information Award
The James Madison Freedom of Information Award is a San Francisco Bay Area honor given to individuals and organizations who have made significant contributions to the advancement of freedom of expression, particularly freedom of information .The award is intended to reflect the spirit of former U.S...
in 2006.http://www.spj.org/norcal/2006/foi2006winners-release.htm
FAC’s Board of Directors consists of representatives of “old” media (e.g., Jerry Ceppos, former VP/News, Knight Ridder; Hal Fuson, Attorney, Former Executive Vice President, The Copley Press, Inc.), “new” media (e.g., Nicole Wong
Nicole Wong
Nicole Wong is the vice president and deputy general counsel at Google and is responsible for arbitrating issues of censorship for Google.-Biography:Nicole Wong is responsible for Google’s product and regulatory matters...
, Associate General Counsel, Google; Dan Gillmor, Knight Center, Cronkite School of Journalism, University of Arizona, Phoenix; Evan Hansen, Executive Editor, Wired.com), as well as academics, representatives of public interest organizations, and media and First Amendment lawyers.