The Baltimore Sun wins the James S. Keat Freedom of Information Award for its body of work reporting with public records. Three strong nominations were received for this award.
The award is named for Jim Keat, a retired editor and foreign correspondent for the Baltimore Sun, who was a long-time advocate for public information access. Keat was inducted into the MDDC Newspaper Hall of Fame in 2013 and is a former recipient of MDDC’s Distinguished Service Award.
The nominees were judged by members of the MDDC Press Foundation. The judges were impressed by The Sun’s Range and scope of stories. The Sun built a body of work that demonstrated a mastery of using the information tools at their disposal. Time and again, from the nursing home and long-term care data, the sweetheart deal for Gov. Hogan’s aide, and the police overtime abuses, etc., The Sun essentially put on a clinic with case studies about how to get the data that laid out the framework for the stories.
In his nomination letter, publisher Trif Alatzas writes “During a difficult year for all, journalists faced unique challenges as they worked to bring vital health information to the public while navigating medical records exemptions in state law and officials bent on using them. The stories we are submitting for consideration for the James S. Keat Freedom of Information Award also reflect The Baltimore Sun’s continued efforts to hold public officials accountable, expose corrupt or conflicted actions, and provide the public with information it needs to make informed decisions. Extracting that information from governments is never easy, but this year too many Maryland leaders worked to block the release of health data even as COVID-19 cases and deaths accelerated. They offered tortured interpretations of PIA laws and refused to release data on infections in nursing homes and longterm care facilities.” He went to share “The Sun’s use of records enhanced our reporting on many beats, at the state and local levels. Our coverage exposed, among other things, a sweetheart deal for Gov. Larry Hogan’s new chief of staff, insider lobbying that led to a lucrative state contract, lack of oversight of unapproved food substances, and staggering police overtime abuses”
The judges spotlighted The Capital for its exposure of a flaw in the Maryland Electronic Court System that allowed lawyers to seal any filing from the public without judicial review.
The Baltimore Sun won the award in 2019, 2018, 2017, 2016, 2015, 2014 and 2012 and joins previous award winners Montgomery County Sentinel (2017), The Daily Times (2013), the Carroll County Times (2011), the Maryland Independent (2010), the Frederick News-Post (2008, 2009), and others.
Special mention for runner-ups
Capital Gazette
Alex Mann and Rick Hutzell were nominated for their critical series of news stories and editorials which exposed a significant flow in the Maryland Electronic Court System being rolled out across the state. With a click of a button marked confidential, attorneys could seal any filing from the public without judicial review. This ability is in clear violation of both the spirit of an open court system and the letter of state law. Almost 70% of the 1,465 court documents filed in the Jerrod Ramos murder trial were kept from the public in this method at the end of 2019, according to a review by the Capital of data from the Maryland Judiciary. By contrast, attorneys seeking to keep records secret when filing by paper must obtain an order from a judge to seal a record, a process that requires notice and an opportunity for any interested party to intervene.
The Frederick News-Post
Heather Mongilio and Paul Milton were nominated for their tenacious coverage and battle with the Maryland Department of Health over release of influenza data. In his nomination letter, editor Paul Milton writes, “For nearly two years, reporters at The Frederick News-Post tried to get influenza data for Frederick County. The local county health department did not have such data, and when asked for the data, the Maryland Department of Health denied the request, citing HIPAA.” This was customary for most diseases, as the Health Department argued that they could not disclose data for less than an entire state. Milton continues, “When Gov. Larry Hogan announced the first cases of COVID, with protected health information, the health department’s denials for flu data became even more confusing. The paper continued mediation, which eventually resulted in the health department releasing flu hospitalizations in the county on a one time basis. At the same time, the story became an examination of how the county released data for COVID-19 and other diseases, with the main focus of COVID-19 versus flu data.”
