More on the Tennessean publishing a CCW database – The KNS responds
Seen at Les Jones, News Sentinel Editor Jack Lail weighs in:
It is an illustration that just because you legally and easily can publish databases of public information, the public might not think you should. And if you can’t defend your position in answering their concerns, maybe they have a point.
In would be no surprise to find people often don’t like having their names in publicly searchable databases. CEOs of publicly traded companies don’t like their total compensation listed. Public officials don’t like government salary databases. People want to keep divorces and bankruptcies out of the paper. Some people don’t want what they sold their house for known. Politicians don’t particularly like campaign disclosure laws or campaign finance databases — unless it detrimental to the efforts of their opponents. Public information can be downright embarrassing when it, well, becomes public.
How information is handled (or what we choose to publish/broadcast) in an age of Internet and electronic databases can be vexing. The media should make as much information available as possible. Government, itself, at all levels should be more open; not less so. I’m all for Sunshine. But as the gun database shows, the rational can’t just be “because we can.”
Update & Correction: Jack Lail is head of online. The editor is Jack McElroy.
May 10th, 2007 at 1:41 pm
Nothing that happened was unpredictable here. And there’s no reason to believe that the Tennessean’s people were unaware of the possibilities. So we’re left with the question of why they did this, and why they caved some quickly and quietly.
There are answers that need to be forthcoming. We should keep demanding them until they are given.
May 10th, 2007 at 1:42 pm
Um… “caved *so* quickly….” Sorry!