Government Transparency Fails: The Comedy of FOIA Errors and Absurdity
In the grand tradition of government transparency, some agencies have mastered the art of making public record requests as painful as a root canal. The Foilies celebrate these epic fails, like the FBI’s redacted-party-photo masterpiece and the Defense Department’s $660 million quote to answer a simple query. Sunshine Week never looked so cloudy!
Hot Take:
Ah, the government transparency game – it’s like a perpetual hide-and-seek, only the seekers are journalists and the hiders are, well, everyone else with a badge or a title. The Foilies are back, and they’re serving up a decade’s worth of chuckles and eye-rolls at the most creative (and often absurd) attempts by governments to stay in the shadows. Who knew FOIA could be so entertaining?
Key Points:
- The Electronic Frontier Foundation’s “The Foilies” celebrate the most outrageous government transparency failures annually.
- The U.S. Department of Defense once quoted $660 million for a simple FOIA request.
- The FBI leads the pack with the most Foilies, thanks to creative redactions and long delays.
- White Castle, Louisiana, handcuffed a journalist for probing into public records.
- Chicago is the reigning champion of FOIA nonchalance, with the police department being a standout performer.
Already a member? Log in here