School of Communications associate professor and Sunshine Center Executive Director Brooke Barnett appeared on News 14 Carolina March 15 to discuss transparency in government and public records issues in advance of North Carolina's Sunshine Day celebration March 17.
Barnett expressed surprise at recent poll results that have determined many North Carolina residents are unaware of sunshine laws. The Sunshine Center, which is housed in Elon University’s School of Communications and is the educational arm of the North Carolina Open Government Coalition, works to inform citizens about their rights to information and access.
“The laws are for everyone,” Barnett said. “The open government and meeting laws are for anybody in the state to find out what’s happening with the government.”
North Carolina Gov. Bev Perdue declared this week Sunshine Week in the state. And on March 17, citizens, journalists, politicians and other public employees will gather at the Historic Salisbury Foundation train depot in Salisbury, N.C., to celebrate Sunshine Day. Registration for the event is still open.