For Immediate Release:
7/9/2009

Contact:
Lauren Rochester, Awards Coordinator, (317) 927-8000 ext. 210, lrochester@spj.org
Karen Grabowski, Communications Coordinator, (317) 927-8000 ext. 215, kgrabowski@spj.org

SPJ honors the Project On Government Oversight with the Sunshine Award

INDIANAPOLIS – The Society of Professional Journalists is pleased to honor The Project On Government Oversight (POGO) with the national Sunshine Award for its important contribution in the area of open government.

POGO will be honored during SPJ’s President’s Installation Banquet, Aug. 29 at the 2009 SPJ Convention and National Journalism Conference in Indianapolis.

The Project is a watchdog group committed to seeking truth and eliminating corruption, abuse and other unfair practices in the government sector. According to POGO Executive Director Danielle Brian, for 28 years the organization has “worked with insiders to investigate, expose and ultimately remedy corruption or other government wrongdoing in order to achieve a more efficient, accountable, open and honest government.” The group assists journalists’ investigative endeavors and enables them to relay the truth to the public.

Three projects conducted by POGO were submitted to SPJ for consideration. The first project consists of the organization’s investigation of the Department of Interior’s Minerals Management Service (MMS), which began in 1995. The second project is the Federal Contractor Misconduct Database (FCMD), which is continuously updated by POGO. FCMD is a Web-based resource that tracks the civil, criminal and administrative misconduct of the federal government’s largest suppliers of goods and services. The final project involves POGO’s investigation of concerns that the Air Force is extravagantly wasting taxpayer funds. For more on these and other POGO investigations, visit the organization’s Web site at www.pogo.org.

POGO will be honored with the recipients of other national honors at SPJ’s Convention, where the Society’s centennial-year celebration continues. For more information about the Convention, please visit www.spj.org/convention.asp.

Founded in 1909 as Sigma Delta Chi, SPJ promotes the free flow of information vital to a well informed citizenry; works to inspire and educate the next generation of journalists; and protects First Amendment guarantees of freedom of speech and press. For more information on SPJ, please visit www.spj.org.

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