BIG hat tip to Mark for this link. Trish Wilson reports on the Open Government Act which protects bloggers under an extension of the Freedom of Information Act.
The specific coolness, for those that don't dig deep (but do read comments??? - ed yes, well...) is not so much "protection" as empowerment. The act seems to define bloggers as "journalists" for purposes of filing FOIA disclosure requests, and THAT is what limits bloggers' exposure to FOIA-related expenses to minimal copying costs (apparently, non-bloggers -- if there are any left -- can file FOIA requests, but may be subject to higher research fees).
The uncoolness of this is that it ain't law yet; drop a line to your rep or senator, whether or not he/she is also your erstwhile lunch companion.
The specific coolness, for those that don't dig deep (but do read comments??? - ed yes, well...) is not so much "protection" as empowerment. The act seems to define bloggers as "journalists" for purposes of filing FOIA disclosure requests, and THAT is what limits bloggers' exposure to FOIA-related expenses to minimal copying costs (apparently, non-bloggers -- if there are any left -- can file FOIA requests, but may be subject to higher research fees).
The uncoolness of this is that it ain't law yet; drop a line to your rep or senator, whether or not he/she is also your erstwhile lunch companion.