The New York Coalition for Open Government recently honored 10 journalists and their publications – including this reporter and newspaper – for their reporting on open government issues.

“July Fourth … reminds us of the freedoms we have,” said Axel Ebermann, public relations director for NYCOG. “We have freedom of speech – we take this for granted, but we don’t have that everywhere in the world.” The press is needed to educate the citizenry about their democracy and its activities, he said.

Recognized 8 organizations for reporting on governmental meeting laws and transparency.

Some of the winners stood out: RiverheadLOCAL did a “to-do” list on government transparency for politicians who just took office. “Our reporting has been surprisingly well received by the public, if not the officials we’re writing about,” its publisher said.

The publisher of the Mountain Eagle News was folding the day’s newspapers as he accepted his award. “If this is not hands-on, I don’t know what is,” Ebermann said.

The Lockport Union-Sun and Journal was awarded for writing about the city’s mayor trying to gag the media, and officials offering less than an hour’s notice on a meeting.

The newspaper’s publisher said that one of the best things newspapers can do is make sure their contributors know New York’s Open Meetings Law and the spirit of it

The Westmore News wrote about how a town restricted appointed committee members from speaking about their service. “The executive session loophole is blatantly being abused,” Ebermann said.

Student journalist Adelaide Barlow noted in an op-ed that student journalists don’t have the same rights as their adult colleagues. Courts have found that high school publications can get censored. Barlow complained that her own school’s administration demands prior review of publications. This delays the run time, often resulting in articles being old and no longer newsworthy.

Barlow advocated for the Student Journalist Free Speech Act, which 18 states have approved, but not New York.