How FOIA Backfired - Con

            In "Why Some Ministers and Officials Think Freedom of Information Was a Mistake", Andrew Sparrow pulls quotes from various government officials to prove that the Freedom of Information Act was a grave mistake on behalf of government transparency. First, he claims that the new transparency policies will lead to the public abusing the power. Next, he states that many officials were disappointed by the anticlimactic outcome of the new transparency. Finally, he argues that the public can not make use of the information without the personal knowledge government officials have.


Sparrow, Andrew. "Why Some Ministers and Officials Think Freedom of Information 
                 Was a Mistake." The Guardian. Guardian News and Media, 22 June 0056. 
                 Web. 23 Feb. 2012 <http://www.guardian.co.uk/politics/blog/2009/jun/   
                  24/freedom-of-information>.


As reference, please watch this short video with Obama speaking about FOIA

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=72g7qmeP1dE

In his article, quotes from different officials prove the inherent downsides to government transparency. Even if the government fulfills the promise of total transparency, the public may be harmed in the process. The laypeople of America may want access to every nook and cranny of the complex American government, but it has been proven that it just exists as a window of opportunity to attack the government. These flaws may not be good for the government, but when every crack is exposed to the public, they could lose faith in the government and stop supporting it, leading to anarchy. Although it would be nice to be able to know everything about our government, it's been shown that the public is not prepared to handle the overload of information and that transparency would cause more harm than good.

Transparency Leads to Necessary Improvement - Pro

In “China Paper Says Government Must Meet Public Demand for ‘Openness’”, Renmin Ribao asserts that, in Beijing, transparency could potentially be very good for their government. First, he states that the government is improving by responding to the public’s need for transparency. Next, he acknowledges that, if used properly, it can be very beneficial. Finally, he sheds light on the possibilities that could occur when transparency is incorrectly applied.

Ribao, Renmin. "China paper says government must meet public demand for 'openness'."
           BBC Monitoring Asia Pacific20 08 2011. n.pag. Web. 8 Feb 2011 
           <http://www.lexisnexis.com/hottopics/scholastic/>.

Although China does not operate under the same paradigm as the US government, the principles Ribao describes are fundamentally applicable to the United States Government. Ribao thoroughly fleshes out all the different sorts of loopholes that a government may create to counteract total transparency. Nevertheless, when executed correctly, transparency not only informs the tax-paying public about the location of their funds, but it also leads to improvement. If the people are well-informed about their home-land, they will know how to fix the problems, not just mask the symptoms, so to speak. Case in point: transparency leads to necessary governmental and societal reform.


Check out this video that details exactly how government transparency is currently being applied in China:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=USGHM52L6As