Deborah Fisher, Author at Tennessee Coalition for Open Government

2 Jun, 2020

TCOG, 55 others ask TN Supreme Court to protect open courts during COVID-19

By Deborah Fisher|2020-06-02T11:30:01-05:00June 2, 2020|Categories: Open Courts, Tennessee Coalition for Open Government|Tags: COVID-19, electronic meetings, judicial districts, Tennessee Supreme Court|1 Comment

The joint petition to the Tennessee Supreme Court asks the court to use its emergency powers to protect public and media access to court proceedings during COVID-19. Tennessee Coalition for Open Government and 55 other organizations and people ranging from news media to criminal justice groups to First Amendment experts have filed a petition with the Tennessee Supreme Court asking the court to take "immediate steps to protect the public's Constitutional and common law right of access to court proceedings" during the COVID-19 epidemic. Few of the 30 judicial district plans submitted and approved by the Supreme Court provide "any reasonable level of compliance" with the constitutional right of access, [...]

13 May, 2020

Most Tennessee COVID-19 court plans offer no provisions for public, media access

By Deborah Fisher|2020-07-14T11:17:18-05:00May 13, 2020|Categories: Open Courts|Tags: COVID-19, electronic meetings, judicial districts, Tennessee Supreme Court|1 Comment

Davidson County Chancellor Ellen H. Lyle (upper right in this April 30 proceeding) has a YouTube channel to stream electronic proceedings and gives the public information on how to access it. However, a review of 26 Judicial District COVID-19 plans shows that most courts in Tennessee have not provided plans on allowing public or press access to either in-person proceedings going forward or electronic proceedings. Most judicial districts that have submitted COVID-19 plans to the Tennessee Supreme Court to resume in-person proceedings — and increase electronic proceedings — offer no guidance on how their courts will operate transparently and openly going forward. A review of 26 judicial plans shows that [...]

9 May, 2020

Memphis news group alleges First Amendment violation over media advisory list blacklisting

By Deborah Fisher|2020-05-09T14:18:03-05:00May 9, 2020|Categories: Journalism|Tags: blacklist, First Amendment, Memphis, MLK50, Paul McAdoo, Reporters Committee for Freedom of the Press, Wendi Thomas|0 Comments

Nonprofit online news organization MLK50 in Memphis has told a federal judge overseeing a consent decree against the city that the city has violated its journalists' First Amendment rights and the court order by repeatedly refusing to add its editors to the city's media advisory list. The city of Memphis has refused to add MLK50 founder and editor Wendi Thomas to the media advisory list after taking her off in 2019. The city has complained she is not "objective" when it comes to her coverage of the mayor. In a letter written on May 4, attorney Paul McAdoo told U.S. District Judge Jon P. McCalla that the city of Memphis [...]

9 May, 2020

Knoxville reporter barred from COVID-19 briefing after critical story

By Deborah Fisher|2020-05-10T09:14:37-05:00May 9, 2020|Categories: Journalism|Tags: COVID-19, Knox County, Knoxville News Sentinel, Mike Donila, press briefing, Vincent Gabrielle|0 Comments

Knoxville News Sentinel reporter Vincent Gabrielle was shut out of a COVID-19 daily press briefing after writing a story highlighting the city's lack of data-sharing on its re-opening benchmarks. Knox County's communications director shut out a Knoxville News Sentinel reporter from the daily COVID-19 briefings on Friday, shortly after his story published about the county not sharing data behind its re-opening benchmarks. The daily briefing is held through Zoom, and news reporters across the city have been given access to the meeting code. However, when news reporter Vincent Gabrielle tried to enter the press briefing where reporters could ask questions through a chat function, he was not allowed in. When [...]

6 May, 2020

Gov. Lee extends order allowing governing bodies to meet electronically through June 30

By Deborah Fisher|2020-05-09T13:09:12-05:00May 6, 2020|Categories: Open Meetings|Tags: COVID-19, electronic meetings, executive order, Gov. Bill Lee, open meetings|0 Comments

Gov. Bill Lee extended provisions in Executive Order No. 16 allowing members of governing bodies to meet electronically through June 30. The order previously was scheduled to expire on May 18. The new order makes no changes in the earlier provisions other than extending the date. Under Executive Order No. 16, a governing body subject to the Open Meetings Act in Tennessee may "meet and conduct its essential business by electronic means, rather than being required to gather a quorum of members physically present at the same location, if the governing body determines that meeting electronically is necessary to protect the health, safety, and welfare of Tennesseans in light of [...]

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About Deborah Fisher