Brier Dudley

The Mariners’ new “Press Club” area, with blue seats, occupies their ballpark’s original press box behind home plate. A new, smaller press box is just above, to the right of broadcast booths, in this March 17 photo.

March 24, 2023 at 2:51 pm

No joy in Mudville as Mariners' press box moves to smaller digs | Brier Dudley

A posh new seating section in what was the press box at the Seattle Mariners ballpark debuts this week, highlighting the local journalism crisis.

The Carlyon House, also known as the Blue House, during its deconstruction by the Hoffman Construction Company in Olympia, Washington, on Wednesday, March 22, 2023. Its deconstruction is part of the Legislative Campus Modernization (LCM) project to replace and renovate aging buildings on the West Capitol Campus. The house was occupied by members of the Capitol Press Corps between the early 1980s and 2021. The Capitol Press Corps moved into new space in the Legislative Building earlier this year. DES is taking steps to offset the loss of those historic buildings through a process called historic mitigation. Salvage, starting with the roof, is the first step in deconstruction.

March 22, 2023 at 3:24 pm

Good luck, California Journalism Preservation Act; farewell Olympia press corps houses | Brier Dudley

A California legislator is proposing a creative new way to help sustain local new organizations, by collecting a "journalism usage fee" from tech giants.

FILE – Sections of a USA Today newspaper lie on display, Aug. 5, 2019, in Norwood, Mass. On Friday, Aug. 12, 2022, newspaper publisher Gannett Co., confirmed that itâ€™s laying off some of its newsroom staff, part of a cost-cutting effort to lower its expenses as revenue crumbles amid a downturn in ad sales and customer subscriptions. (AP Photo/Steven Senne, File)

March 15, 2023 at 8:06 pm

Free Press roundup: Gannett declines an opportunity; Twitter challenge | Brier Dudley

If Facebook's new Twitter challenger takes off, it will be a test for news outlets.

Jeffrey A. Roberts, Executive Director of Colorado Freedom of Information Coalition

March 10, 2023 at 2:11 pm

Q&A with freedom of information advocate Jeff Roberts | Brier Dudley

Too few media outlets have the time, resources and owners willing to fund costly investigations and fight for records and open meetings in court if...

Lisa Spradlin sorts through documents she’s gathered about her son Blake, who is incarcerated in the West Virginia correctional system. Her attempts to find out more about his safety were denied after lawmakers passed a bill to block many jail and prison documents from public scrutiny.

March 8, 2023 at 2:58 pm

Tired of public-records shenanigans? Contact state senators | Brier Dudley

More Washingtonians should contact state representatives and object to House Bill 1533. It may be well-intentioned but drastically increases government secrecy.

Rep. JT Wilcox, R-Yelm (House Republican Leader), left, Sen. Sen. Andy Billig, D-Spokane (Senate Democratic Leader), and House Speaker Laurie Jinkins, D-Tacoma, all members of the Legislative Caucus leaders pane speak outside during a false fire alarm in the John A. Cherberg building at the Capitol in Olympia on Thursday, January 5, 2022.

March 3, 2023 at 7:49 am

WA Legislature's secrecy push undermines accountability, trust and civic knowledge | Brier Dudley

Washington legislators are poised to bring a new era of secrecy to state government, compounding the problems resulting from the decline of local news coverage.

The Seattle Times North Creek printing facility in Bothell Washington. The facility prints other publications including USA Today.
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March 1, 2023 at 3:37 pm

Free Press roundup: WA legislative progress, Google bullies Canada | Brier Dudley

SB 5199 would expand the preferential B&O tax rate for newspaper publishers, and Google began blocking some Canadians from getting news via its search engine.

Opinion

President Joe Biden delivers the State of the Union address to a joint session of Congress at the U.S. Capitol, Tuesday, Feb. 7, 2023, in Washington, as Vice President Kamala Harris and House Speaker Kevin McCarthy of Calif., applaud. (AP Photo/Jacquelyn Martin, Pool) POW114 (Jacquelyn Martin / AP)

February 15, 2023 at 3:59 pm