Public information is just that . . . public
A resident of Dallas visited a relative in Beaumont and took a look at The Enterprise while she was here. What she saw on our pages was so disturbing it moved her to write a letter of complaint.
She wrote to say she was “shocked” by the fact that this newspaper actually “printed of list of folks who had the misfortune to file for bankruptcy” and said the paper’s action, in printing those bankruptcy reports bordered on “mean.” She referred to the practice of presenting this “hurting information for all to see” as “unnecessary and very small town.”
She also objects to The Enterprise’s publication of birth announcements for couples who are unmarried, though I’m not sure how she distinguishes those from couples who simply have chosen to use different last names.
The writer says her beloved hometown paper, the Dallas Morning News, would never publish such information.
My reply to this woman will say several things, including, a mention of the potential “misfortune” of those businesses to whom the person filing for bankruptcy owes money – a very legitimate reason for publishing those lists.
It also will say – hold on to your hat, ‘cause you “ain’t seen nuthin’ yet.”
The Dallas Morning News, and the even less “small-town” Houston Chronicle, are among newspapers riding a trend of posting database information on their Web pages. The Enterprise is on the verge of making sure we supply our readers with any and all information they might want to access.
Bankruptcies, lawsuits, divorces and other such “private” matters are just the beginning.
If your salary is paid by public tax money, that’s going on-line too . . . and the tax valuation of your house or other property . . . and the TAKS scores of the school your child attends.
Those who are offended by such intrusions into privacy can feel free to skip that portion of our Web site. Readers who, conversely, are curious to know just how much money public officials are putting in their pockets, will probably like the easy access to what is . . . public record.
She wrote to say she was “shocked” by the fact that this newspaper actually “printed of list of folks who had the misfortune to file for bankruptcy” and said the paper’s action, in printing those bankruptcy reports bordered on “mean.” She referred to the practice of presenting this “hurting information for all to see” as “unnecessary and very small town.”
She also objects to The Enterprise’s publication of birth announcements for couples who are unmarried, though I’m not sure how she distinguishes those from couples who simply have chosen to use different last names.
The writer says her beloved hometown paper, the Dallas Morning News, would never publish such information.
My reply to this woman will say several things, including, a mention of the potential “misfortune” of those businesses to whom the person filing for bankruptcy owes money – a very legitimate reason for publishing those lists.
It also will say – hold on to your hat, ‘cause you “ain’t seen nuthin’ yet.”
The Dallas Morning News, and the even less “small-town” Houston Chronicle, are among newspapers riding a trend of posting database information on their Web pages. The Enterprise is on the verge of making sure we supply our readers with any and all information they might want to access.
Bankruptcies, lawsuits, divorces and other such “private” matters are just the beginning.
If your salary is paid by public tax money, that’s going on-line too . . . and the tax valuation of your house or other property . . . and the TAKS scores of the school your child attends.
Those who are offended by such intrusions into privacy can feel free to skip that portion of our Web site. Readers who, conversely, are curious to know just how much money public officials are putting in their pockets, will probably like the easy access to what is . . . public record.
posted by Sheila Friedeck at 3:11 PM
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