President Obama took office promising to usher in an unprecedented level of transparency and accountability in the federal government.
Back in 2009, when he said federal agencies “should take affirmative steps to make information public,” he promised that the administration would make openness a centerpiece of its agenda.
But as the curtain closes on Obama’s second term, many of his lofty promises remain unfulfilled.
For example, despite signing the Whistleblower Protection Enhancement Act, which was supposed to usher in a new era of protections for officials who speak out against waste and fraud, the Obama White House has brought more cases against whistleblowers under the Espionage Act than all previous administrations combined.
In other areas — such as a plan to improve the Freedom of Information Act, or a proposal to shine a light on federal spending — the administration hasn’t only fallen short, but sometimes undermined reforms that would make the ways of Washington more open to public scrutiny.
Consider the short-lived office of the “ethics czar,” a position President Obama created to crack down on government corruption and malfeasance. It was a good idea, but one that didn’t last long — the position has been vacant since 2011.
To be fair, there have been some notable achievements on Obama’s watch.
For example, his administration implemented stronger “revolving door” rules to limit officials from moving back and forth between the government and lucrative private sector jobs. The White House has also encouraged federal agencies to proactively disclose documents without pending Freedom of Information Act requests.
Yet on balance, the Obama legacy on open government is subpar.
The good news is that there’s still (barely) time to reverse course and make some immediate changes to salvage this legacy.
This spring, a dozen nonprofits — including seasoned watchdog groups like Public Citizen, the Government Accountability Project, and my organization, the Project on Government Oversight — sent a letter to the White House detailing actionable, realistic changes that would immediately improve how Washington does business.
The letter calls on the president to shine a light on the rigged campaign finance system, make the Senate torture report public, improve whistleblower protections, and further slow down the revolving door between Washington and Wall Street.
As of this writing, the White House hasn’t responded to the letter.
But these recommendations aren’t asking for the moon. They’re practical steps toward fulfilling the promise of a more ethical, accountable, effective, and open government that President Obama made when he first took office.
We’re not backing down in the face of Trump’s threats.
As Donald Trump is inaugurated a second time, independent media organizations are faced with urgent mandates: Tell the truth more loudly than ever before. Do that work even as our standard modes of distribution (such as social media platforms) are being manipulated and curtailed by forces of fascist repression and ruthless capitalism. Do that work even as journalism and journalists face targeted attacks, including from the government itself. And do that work in community, never forgetting that we’re not shouting into a faceless void – we’re reaching out to real people amid a life-threatening political climate.
Our task is formidable, and it requires us to ground ourselves in our principles, remind ourselves of our utility, dig in and commit.
As a dizzying number of corporate news organizations – either through need or greed – rush to implement new ways to further monetize their content, and others acquiesce to Trump’s wishes, now is a time for movement media-makers to double down on community-first models.
At Truthout, we are reaffirming our commitments on this front: We won’t run ads or have a paywall because we believe that everyone should have access to information, and that access should exist without barriers and free of distractions from craven corporate interests. We recognize the implications for democracy when information-seekers click a link only to find the article trapped behind a paywall or buried on a page with dozens of invasive ads. The laws of capitalism dictate an unending increase in monetization, and much of the media simply follows those laws. Truthout and many of our peers are dedicating ourselves to following other paths – a commitment which feels vital in a moment when corporations are evermore overtly embedded in government.
Over 80 percent of Truthout‘s funding comes from small individual donations from our community of readers, and the remaining 20 percent comes from a handful of social justice-oriented foundations. Over a third of our total budget is supported by recurring monthly donors, many of whom give because they want to help us keep Truthout barrier-free for everyone.
You can help by giving today. Whether you can make a small monthly donation or a larger gift, Truthout only works with your support.