This post is intended to present readers with information
and data from a credible government source. The information I found is data
collected from the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) regarding the Broadcasting
Board of Governors (BBG) and what they spend their money on. I intend on
evaluating this information with a critical eye for credibility along with any
bias towards certain networks that might stem from the investment of the
Broadcasting Board of Governors.
When searching for this information, I started with usa.gov,
a website that provides access to government information and agencies. I began
by searching for information based of my topic, bias in the media, and came
across the Freedom of Information Act. I followed the link to this site, coming
across data about the Broadcasting Board of Governors. After viewing this
sight, I found a PDF of the agency’s annual report. Below you can find the
links to all three of these sights:
The FOIA is a law enacted in 1966 to allow citizens the right
to view federal agency records. A request to view an agency record is available
to anyone at any time. Often time, people consider the Freedom of Information
Act the law that keeps “people in the know about their government”.
The Freedom of Information Act provided information about
the budget that is allotted to the Broadcasting Board of Governors. Over $202
million is given to the agency, all while $200 million is given to Voice of
America. The law also provided information that the Broadcasting Board of
Governors is exempted from providing “information that is prohibited from
disclosure by another federal law”.
This document is very credible considering that it is a
result of the government’s inability to withhold information from citizen’s if
requested, unless the information falls under one of nine exemptions listed
under the Freedom of Information Act. A quarterly report, one from the
beginning of 2015 would make this document more credible, however, the annual
report gives a larger, better overview of the Broadcasting Board of Governors
actions. This document provides me with a reassurance that the government is withheld
to a certain standard of being unbiased and providing true information to the
public. However, I am now curious how media portrays this government
information.
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