Sunshine Week comes at a time of new challenge

Each year in March, news media organizations across the country highlight the importance of transparency in government and the work of journalists to ensure openness among elected officials.

Sunshine Week, as the observance is known, is timed to coincide with the March 16 birthday of James Madison, fourth president of the United States and a framer of the Bill of Rights and its guarantee of freedom of the press. Celebrating Sunshine Week at the time of his birthdate is meant to honor Madison for his stalwart protection of a free press as a watchdog over government.

This year’s observance coincides with marking two years since the first cases of COVID-19 were detected in our region, upending life as we knew it and testing the responsibilities of open government in new ways.

The sudden spread of a global pandemic broke new ground in public health reporting, creating a need for accurate, consistent and timely information from trusted sources. Journalists had to report on changing messages from public health officials — masks or no masks? — and navigate through uncertainty and discoveries surrounding both the disease and ways to prevent its spread.

The virus forced shutdowns of local government and schools, unprecedented in our lifetime, causing a sea change in the workings of local government. Municipal offices, schools, government meetings and courts were closed, forcing meetings to be held virtually and court sessions by video.

There were new questions about whether streamed meetings should be saved as public record, whether every submitted public comment should be read aloud and how to ensure public participation in areas where citizens lack access to internet.

Local news journalists played an important role in creating understanding through this unusual time, working to ask the questions and report the actions of local government, be it state, county, school board, borough or township.

The Pennsylvania NewsMedia Association, of which this newspaper is a member, is the state sponsor of Sunshine Week to draw attention to the Sunshine Act and Open Records Law in Pennsylvania. These laws together guarantee the public’s right to access government information at public meetings and through public records, allowing the public to witness decision-making so that the democratic process functions properly — and to be made aware when the doors are closed.

Our role is to challenge executive sessions and point out when public appointments are made without public interviews, for example, and when the exceptions for a closed-door meeting are applied improperly.

The shutdowns also created a new dynamic in public schools. Parents, frustrated by school closings and masking policies, started turning to the internet for more information and found others with common complaints and fears. Internet-fueled rumors fostered mistrust in public school officials and emboldened parents.

School board meetings — whether virtual or in person — became confrontations between frustrated parents and school officials as opinions collided about what constituted safety for children.

Local journalists reported on comments amid the tension of meetings, seeking to navigate the fine line between giving a platform to offensive speech and reflecting the community. Microphones and video were sometimes shut off when meetings became too heated, disrupting the all-important public record that needs to exist in a transparent government.

Sunshine laws were not easy to enforce in this environment, but open records officers and reporters have worked hard to navigate the unusual landscape, With the easing of restrictions, sunshine seems this month to be an appropriate theme to embrace.

Coming out of these two years of restrictions has also shown opportunities. The practice of streaming meetings allows local news reporters whose numbers have shrunk in recent years to be in two places at once. Of course the ability of officials to manipulate what reporters can see is a real danger, and the local press must be vigilant and the laws to ensure sunshine must be enforced.

The rules of open government are not in place to make easier the work of journalists. Rather, the work of journalists exists to give citizens insights into actions officials conduct outside public view. Open government is a two-way street lined with trust. This week is a reminder to walk it outside the darkness of secrecy and let the sun shine in.