Getting stumped by government? Nominate one for the CAJ's Code of Silence!

OTTAWA, April 17, 2012 /CNW/ - You've emailed, you've called, you've FOI'd. You were forced to fight for public information.

Now it's your turn to get even.

For the 11th successive year, the Canadian Association of Journalists is accepting nominations for your favourite (sic) government department or publicly funded agency for the CAJ's Code of Silence. The code, presented annually since 2001, recognizes Canada's most secretive publicly funded body.

"I would love to hear of the day when a journalist in this country asks for controversial, sensitive or substantive public information and isn't stonewalled at every turn," CAJ president Hugo Rodrigues said. "Public data belongs to the public and we should have access to it in all its forms."

This award isn't just for the big federal and provincial government departments and agencies. Previous nominees included municipal councils in Montague, PEI, and Rossland, B.C. as well as the economic development agency in Fort Erie, Ont. We welcome nominations from journalists working in any newsroom who face the frustration of wrangling information out of any publicly funded body that seems to put extra effort into keeping it from the public.

Nominations can be e-mailed to our president. The deadline for nominees is Wednesday, April 25 - two days before the start of the #CAJ2012 conference in Toronto. The award will be handed out to the winner as part of the CAJ awards banquet on April 28 at the Fairmont Royal York, MC'd by Global National anchor and executive editor Dawna Friesen.

The CAJ is Canada's largest national professional organization for journalists from all media, representing about 600 members across the country. The CAJ's primary roles are to provide high-quality professional development for its members and public-interest advocacy.

Hugo Rodrigues, CAJ president - 519-756-2020 ext. 2226, 519-535-8680 cell, [email protected]

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