The decision of a New York newspaper to publish the names of handgun owners has sparked a new debate about Freedom Of Information acts, and how they relate to two Constitutional amendments.

Freedom_of_Information_logoThe First Amendment allows the media to publish information of public interest, and the Second Amendment, as interpreted under a Supreme Court ruling, allows people to own guns, to use for self-defense and other purposes.

So what happens when a newspaper deliberately publishes a map showing the names and locations of gun-permit owners in two huge suburban counties?

There was a lot of outrage over the decision by the Journal News, a Gannett-owned newspaper, to make it easy for readers to find some gun owners in Rockland and Westchester counties.

The paper filed a series of state Freedom Of Information requests to get the data and then placed the names and addresses of some gun owners on a street-level map.

The newspaper had a right to the data, under several laws.

There is a federal act that dates back to the era of President Lyndon Johnson and it allows the public to file a request to see most federal government-gathered information that isnt easily accessible.

There are nine type of exceptions where the federal government can deny a request.

New York has its own Freedom Of Information law, and it allows citizens to receive information within two months. The Journal News had partial information on the two counties within days.

The newspaper has been unapologetic.

The rest is here:

Newspaper’s Freedom Of Information use questioned