NMSU Library to host 10th annual Sunshine Week

Marking its tenth year at New Mexico State University, Sunshine Week 2022 is set to kick off virtually on Wednesday, March 30, at 3 p.m.

This year's two-part event is titled "Hidden Truth: Controversy and Transparency." Sunshine Week is a national initiative created by the American Society of News Editors in an effort to educate the public about the importance of open government and transparency.

"We often think of democracy as 'people in action.' That's a huge part of it, but it's also crucial that people can find out what their government is up to. This is why transparency is so important to a functioning society," said David Irvin, business and government documents librarian at NMSU.

A workshop about the Inspection of Public Records Act is planned for the first part of the event and will be hosted by Peter Goodman, a Las Cruces-based lawyer and radio personality. After that, the NMSU Library will host a Zoom panel moderated by Walt Rubel, another Las Cruces journalist and radio personality. Panel members will include Malik Baker, the Elijah Cummings Legal Fellow at the National Security Archive; Ed Williams, a Searchlight investigative reporter; and Ernesto Cisneros, first-year staff writer at The Round Up.

"Our excellent panel members have been peeling back the red tape and demanding transparency," Irvin said.

The two-part event is expected to run about an hour and a half.

Attendees are required to register ahead of time at https://bit.ly/35VH4OB.

For more information, contact Irvin at dirv@nmsu.edu. The NMSU Library, alumnus Tim Parker, the NMSU Department of Journalism and Media Studies, and Las Cruces community radio KTAL will sponsor this event.