2008 Public Records Audit

Better access to public records one of the few perks of being a reporter

By Michael Merline

Sara Boyd wanted to see a list of those booked into the Oconto County Sheriff’s Department. Every time she spoke to new staff member requesting this information she was asked to identify herself, and at first only gave her name. But once she mentioned her employer – the Green Bay Press-Gazette – suddenly the initially resistant department became overtly obliging.

“A woman at the county jail said she could get the information for me but it would take a long time,” Boyd said. “Then she asked why I wanted this information and if I as from the media. I told her yes, I was from the Press-Gazette. She [then] said she would fax over the information and wanted to be clear that she was fulfilling the request and being cooperative.”

Wisconsin’s public records law ensures any citizen may request to see open records from civic bodies regardless of their reason or identity. The law protects this right of citizens and the press, yet in Wisconsin not every individual’s requests are considered or treated the same way.

In particular, journalists and members of the press seem to receive special treatment when they request information from various governmental agencies. Based on the results from the Wisconsin Freedom of Information Council public records audit, many reporters’ experiences suggest this treatment is often positive and more accommodating than those of the general public.

Television reporter Evan Perrault of Green Bay’s WLUK believes many agency officials try to process media requests before those from members of the public. Because of this he always identifies himself as a journalist when making requests, as do other WLUK reporters.

“I usually fax in the requests on company letterhead…I always identify who I am. People have always been receptive and get me the info in a prompt time frame,” Perrault said.

Some officials go so far as to demand requesters identify themselves prior to fulfilling even simple requests. But the public records law states an individual should not have to present credentials of any sort to gain access to public documents.

Journalists should not receive preference or differing treatment due to their professional ties to the media.

But many do. University of Wisconsin Madison journalism students seeking lists of inmates serving time in Rock County were asked to identify themselves as students before receiving the information they needed. A member of the Clark county school system hesitated to grant Marshfield News-Herald reporter Liz Welter’s recent request until Welter explained she worked for a newspaper. And reporter Patti Zarling contacted the police chief of Oconto Falls in early October to request documents and was told she would have to submit a written request to be reviewed by an attorney. However, she bypassed a potentially time-consuming process when she did mention her credentials.

“He asked who I was and I told him I’d prefer not to say,” Zarling said. “I sent a letter to him, which did say who I was, and the next day the list was faxed to the newspaper.”

Some officials are highly cooperative when solicited for requests regardless of whether handling those from the press or the general public. Some students had great success gaining open-records in early October without even mentioning their names.

But the majority of negative experiences requesting open-documents come from those who don’t identify themselves – and the action of mentioning their employer seemed to decide whether some professionals received their requests at all. Reporter Mark Gunderman encountered this situation while asking for a record from a Chippewa County township.

“The clerk asked who our contact was and what this was for. [My colleague] said he didn’t have to say…She took his first name and cell-phone number to contact him when she could have the materials ready. He never got a call.”

Requesting documents in writing also proves more successful than doing so orally, but this may be a result of written requests often identifying the credentials of the requester.

WLUK’s Monica Landeros only submitted written requests when working in Peoria, Ill., and would always indicate station information, though she thinks this didn’t impact the quality of the information she received. And WLUK news-anchor Mark Leland always indicates in advance that he’s a journalist by submitting requests on station letterhead or email. He thinks writing them makes a difference in how successful his efforts are.

“I can tell you the last request from the military I made came back with ‘no information being released. Confidential material,’” Leland said. But they wouldn’t tell me that until I put the request in writing.”

University of Wisconsin-Madison professor Lewis Friedland, who requested documents as a field-producer of a major television studio’s investigative unit, noted this kind of behavior was also evident in the 1990s.

“Back then when [the Freedom of Information Act] was relatively new people were more interested in appearing to comply then figuring out ways around it.”

Journalists often have an easier time soliciting open-records after they reveal their credentials to civic agencies. University of Wisconsin student Lavilla Capener said the Dodgeville Sheriff’s Office willingness to fulfill her request “completely changed when they knew [she was] from the University.”

And In Boyd’s case an 11-page fax arrived at her desk an hour later.

Journalists shouldn’t have to reveal their professional identity to receive the information they ask for in proper legal format, but in reality their association with the press often makes the process of gaining records both faster and more successful.