by K B | Aug 30, 2026 | Events, News, Weltner Award
Clinical Associate Professor Clare Norins (center front) directs the First Amendment Clinic at the University of Georgia School of Law. GFAF will recognize the clinic’s staff and students as Open Government Heroes at the 2026 Weltner Banquet on Oct. 28. A...
by K B | Aug 27, 2026 | Events, News, Weltner Award
The timeline just didn’t make sense to Bill Rankin. He was reporting on the investigation into Richard Jewell, a security guard suspected of single handedly orchestrating the July 17, 1996, Centennial Olympic Park bombing. A few days after the bombing,...
by K B | Mar 25, 2026 | Legislative Watch, News
By Zelda Lerner Student journalists cover stories that matter — not just to peers in school, but to broader communities. They ask hard questions. They report with integrity. They are on the ground, in the hallways, at the protests, and in the conversations that shape...
by K B | Mar 23, 2026 | Attorneys, Events
By Shweta Krishnan Most panelists at this year’s Georgia Bar, Media and Judiciary Conference shared a single opinion: Threats to the First Amendment are no longer theoretical. The conference, which drew judges, lawyers and journalists to downtown Atlanta on Feb. 20,...
by K B | Feb 19, 2026 | Attorneys, News
Updated Feb. 19, 2026 When a police officer stops a car, enters a private home, detains someone in public or otherwise acts for the first time in a matter of police business, that action is, under law, recorded in an initial police report. And that initial report is,...
by jmf | Feb 6, 2026 | News
The Georgia First Amendment Foundation condemns the growing pattern of government actions that intimidate, obstruct, and punish newsgathering and public oversight of law enforcement. Across the country, journalists and legal observers have been detained, arrested, or...
by K B | Oct 13, 2025 | Legislative Watch, News
By Shweta Krishnan The Georgia First Amendment Foundation is honoring foundation board member Richard T. Griffiths with its Founder’s Award, a tribute to one of its own for steadfast commitment to the organization and its mission. “This award recognizes Richard’s...
by John McCosh | Sep 17, 2025 | News, Weltner Award
Richard Belcher’s distinguished career as a TV journalist was defined by dogged pursuit of investigative stories bolstered by public records. Over his 50 years of reporting, Belcher consistently broke the big story, digging in when government officials tried to stymie...
by K B | Sep 3, 2025 | News, Weltner Award
Charles Davis has helped loose a small army of journalists holding public officials to account when government strays from Georgia’s Sunshine Laws. Dean of the University of Georgia’s Grady College of Journalism and Mass Communication since 2013, Davis ensures...
by K B | Jun 26, 2025 | Attorneys, News
By Clare Norins & Joy Ramsingh As the Georgia Legislature recognizes, “open government is essential to a free, open, and democratic society.” OCGA 15-18-70(a). In many ways, Georgia prioritizes open government. For instance, the state Open Records Act requires an...
