I read an editorial a few days ago in an out-of-state newspaper about the ongoing debate surrounding the repeated attempts by legislators in several states to remove public notices from newspapers. From where I sit, I am obviously not in favor of this. You shouldn’t be either. Why? Read on.
As the editorial I mentioned pointed out, newspapers shine light on the activities of government like nothing else can. In my opinion, this is absolutely true. The public’s right to know is critically important. In fact, a newspaper’s main function is to keep the public properly informed. Self-governance and the public’s right to know are two of the key components that allow our system of government to function as it was designed. Holding government accountable has long been the standard definition of a newspaper’s mission, as I was taught when I first entered this business 24 years ago. If newspapers are no longer allowed to function as they have for more than 300 years in America, the public will be harmed — and placed in great danger.
Public notices have long been recognized as some of the most important information contained in a newspaper. They are about the public’s right to know. They are about complete transparency. Newspapers take great pride in being a beacon of information for the communities they serve, and we take this service and obligation very seriously.
What will happen if governmental entities are no longer required to publish their meeting minutes in print, permit applications do not appear in print, or notices related to proposed property tax increases are not published? In my opinion, the outcome is not good.
Over the years, I have known countless people — even long before I joined this industry — who subscribed to or read the newspaper solely for public notices. From where I sit today, this still holds true. As I often say when discussing our editorial policy and our editorial page, it is about an open forum. It is about public dialogue.
It is also about people reading and learning about what is happening in their community and responding to their elected officials to express their opinions. If this fails to happen, where will we be? If municipal bodies and government entities are left to publish their activities solely on a government website, can we say with complete assurance that the public is properly and adequately informed? Is this fostering complete transparency? The short and obvious answer to both questions is no.
In Louisiana, this debate has been ongoing for several years. It comes up during every legislative session. In recent years, bills have been introduced in both chambers of our state legislature seeking to remove public notices from newspapers. It should be made clear that governmental bodies will not save the money they think they will by removing public notices from newspapers. In fact, they will most likely see costs increase, as additional staffing and resources will be required to publish public notices on government websites. And if this information is published only online, there is no way to ensure complete transparency or guarantee that 100% of the public is properly informed — not everyone has easy access to a computer or mobile device.
As I said above, newspapers take their service to the public very seriously. That is why we are here: to serve you, the public. However, legislation that removes public notices from newspapers would greatly diminish our ability to fulfill that mission. For many smaller newspapers in our state, such legislation could completely threaten their ability to remain in operation. Without these newspapers, a vital means of recording local history — and protecting the public’s right to know — would vanish.
Remove your local newspaper, and your community quickly and sadly becomes less local.
Randy Brown is Regional Publisher and Executive VP of Specht Newspapers, Inc.