2025 University of Florida Collier Prize: State of Accountability Journalism

Access Denied: Barriers to Information in Accountability Journalism

A survey of investigative journalists who routinely report on government accountability showed that limited access to records or sources has emerged as the greatest challenge in holding government officials accountable. Most reported frequent delays, denials, or excessive costs when filing public records requests, and nearly half described difficulty securing interviews or official comment.

The US “federal Freedom of Information Act, often known as FOIA, ranks 78th in strength out of 140 nations, and continuously drops as new countries adopt better laws,” he wrote in a recent op-ed.  “On average, according to our research, if you asked for a public record in America 10 years ago, you would get it about half the time. Now, it’s down to about a third of the time, and just 12% at the federal level.’’