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| Thursday, December 14, 2006 |
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Times sees the 'light 
| | I miscalculated the timing of my breakfast meeting at Henrietta's this morning, so I had an hour to read the New York Times from the front page to the back. Among the pieces I was glad to see was an editorial, Congress and the Benefits of Sunshine. Here's an excerpt: |
| | For all the worthy proposals for ethics reform being hashed out by the incoming Congress, a heavy dose of Internet transparency should not be overlooked in the effort to repair lawmakers' tattered credibility. The technology is already there, along with the public's appetite for more disclosure about the byways of power in Congress. |
| | The Web is increasingly wielded by both campaign donors and bloggers clicking and tapping as wannabe muckrakers. Politicians would be wise to catch up. Local citizens were enlisted to track pork-barrel abuses in the last campaign by a new watchdog organization, the Sunlight Foundation, which enlisted Ms. Gillibrand's disclosure pledge. It aims to have voters use the Internet as an engine of political information. |
| | Much more than disclosure is needed to cure the Capitol's ills — particularly some sort of independent agency to prod Congress to fully investigate corruption allegations. But prompt, searchable postings of basic data — from lobbyists' itineraries and expenses to incumbents' donor ties and legislative labors — should be part of any corruption cure. In the information age, this amounts to a modest proposal for a Congress truly intent on reform. |
| | It's nice to see the Sunlight Foundation, and other efforts like it, get the credit they're due. Transparency is not a partisan issue. It's essential to a healthy democracy. While the Net itself is transparent to the information travelling through it (so far, anyway), we still need to bring formerly hidden facts and workings to light. Which is why organizations like the Sunlight Foundation and its relatives are doing essential work. |
| | By the way, I've found that Henrietta's is for politics and media what Bucks Woodside is for Venture Capital and start-ups. Yesterday morning Al Gore graced a corner table, looking like a large gray businessman. This morning we ran into Chris Lydon (veteran public broadcaster and one-time candidate for mayor of Boston) and spotted Chris Matthews at another table. And those where just the folks we recognized. |
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