News from 2015

Nauman Smith, WITF Host Event on Future History of Media

Panel moderator, Mike Greenwald, with panelists from left to right, Kathleen Pavelko, President & CEO of WITF; Randy Parker, Managing Editor of the York Daily Record, Gregory Steirer, Assistant Professor of English & Film Studies at Dickinson College and Cate Barron, Vice President of Content for PA Media Group. Harrisburg, PA – The challenge of delivering quality journalism in a world where everyone with internet access is providing content was the focus of a recent panel discussion hosted by Harrisburg law firm Nauman Smith and public broadcasting station WITF.  … Read On

Emails Showing Employee Misconduct Are Not Public Records

The Commonwealth Court has held emails documenting agency employees receipt and delivery of pornography on public computers are not public records. Pennsylvania Office of the Attorney General v. the Philadelphia Inquirer, ____ A.3d _____, No. 2096 C.D. 2014 (Pa.Cmwlth., Nov. 19, 2015). The court reasoned “… emails should not be considered ‘records’ just because they are sent or received using an agency email address or by virtue of their location on an agency-owned computer… Read On

PA Supreme Court Clarifies Accessibility of Government Contractor/Subcontractor Records

The Pennsylvania Supreme Court has issued a pair of decisions[1] to clarify the extent that government agencies must disclose records documenting public money paid to government contractors and subcontractors. First, records in the possession of an agency that “deal with” the disbursement of public funds are public records, even if such records contain a government contractor’s trade secrets or confidential proprietary information… Read On