Term
| What does the Freedom of Information Act do? |
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Definition
| It opens public records from Executive Branch departments, agencies, and offices; federal regulatory agencies; and federal corporations. |
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Term
| To which branch does it apply? |
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Definition
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Term
| Is anyone entitled to use the FOIA? |
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Definition
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Term
| How would you go about filing a FOIA request? |
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Definition
| Submit a request in writing and include all relevant information. |
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Term
| How do you get info from the Legislative Judicial branches? |
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Definition
Legislative
Library of Congress database.
Thomas database.
Government Printing Office.
Judicial
Appeal on appellate court websites. PACER (Public Access to Court Electronic Records) for US Judiciary Supplies or private subscription databases. |
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Term
| Does the 1st amendment protect journalist's privilege? |
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Definition
| Journalists argue that it does, but courts are not unanimous on this topic. The supreme court rejected the notion that the 1st amendment protects journalists from having to testify before a grand jury. |
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Term
| When are bloggers protected by journalist's privilege? |
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Definition
| When they publish regularly. |
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Term
| Does the Privacy Protection Act of 1980 apply to bloggers? |
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Definition
| Not meant to but it could now. Most consider bloggers to be online journalists. In Texas they are covered but only if a substantial portion of their income is from journalistic activities. |
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