The Seattle Times, like most newspapers, is a big proponent of open government. Individual privacy takes a back seat when it comes to a newspaper’s right to information.
So one might think that the Times, in the absence of easy access to information, might be very skilled at finding stuff – like, say, Jay Inslee’s calendar – that is available through public record requests or even internet searches.
But, alas, that is not the case.
Instead, the Times is opining today that it needs the legislature to act to make its job less like a job. The Times complains that it “takes forensic sleuthing to dig through nesting-doll campaign funds to get to the real donors” when reporting on who funds political campaigns.
Umm, not really.
The Times could just go to the state’s Public Disclosure Commission (PDC) website and click on the “Search Database” tab to find out the donor to any candidate or political action committee.
But evidently, that is the equivalent of “forensic sleuthing” to the Times. In the old days, others might have called it “research”.
So, since internet search is evidently very hard, instead the Times wants the legislature to pass as new law to make it easy on them. Maybe the legislature could also fund some middle-school students to help with internet research.
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