The Indiana Publisher

Publisher The Indiana Volume 84, Issue 7 • July 2019 Published on second Thursday monthly John Tuohy Indianapolis Star The Indianapolis Star has filed a lawsuit in its efforts to obtain the personal email of Indiana Attorney General Curtis Hill and his top deputy when they conduct govern- ment business through those accounts. The lawsuit by IndyStar and reporter Ryan Martin in Marion Superior Court names the attorney general's office as defendant and seeks the email addresses of Hill and Chief Deputy Aaron Negangard. The complaint says that because Hill and Negangard conduct government affairs through their personal email accounts, the email must be released under the state's open records law, known as the Access to Public Records Act. To make formal requests for such email, however, IndyStar needs the personal email addresses to specify which records it seeks. The attorney general's office has so far refused to reveal the officials' email addresses. IndyStar News and Investigations Director Alvie Lindsay said if public officials aren't required to turn over personal accounts in such cir- cumstances, then conceivably, government business could be conducted in secret through those private emails. "We have no idea why AG Hill is using his personal email account or how often," Lindsay said in an email. "I do believe, though, that the lengths to which he is keep- ing it hidden raises questions. And we do believe the public has a right to know for what purpose AG Hill is using his private email to conduct public business." A spokes- man for the attorney gen- eral, Chris Proffitt, said it was office poli- cy to refrain from commenting on pending legal actions. Martin, who covers criminal justice and other legal matters for IndyStar, had requested cor- respondence from the attorney general's office in July 2018 about employee turnover in the agency. The office provided 19 email records, while denying 44 others, but several of those 19 had redactions. Among the blacked-out sections were Hill IndyStar sues Attorney General Hill's office for email records See Lawsuit, page 7 The Access to Public Records Request does not recognize the expectation of privacy for such information. Luke Britt, Indiana Public Access Counselor Hill Save the date Advertising Awards Banquet, Sept. 13 • Better Newspaper Awards Banquet, Sept. 14. Registration info available soon at https://www.hspa.com/events-and-deadlines/ Tools and tips on storytelling across platforms was the focus of the 2019 News Media Workshop. Media professionals from around the state met at the University of Indianapolis on June 19 for the one-day event sponsored by HSPA, the Indiana Broadcasters Association and the Indiana Associated Press Media Editors. The workshop was designed to offer a variety of practical information that people could take back and apply in their newsrooms. Tori Fater, a breaking news reporter with the Evansville Courier & Press, said the session offered by Indiana Public Access Counselor Luke Britt and HSPA Executive Director Steve Key was especially helpful. "I think I took three pages of notes," Fater said. The session addressed a perennial concern for reporters — rights and access to docu- ments and public records. "It's important to remember government is meant to serve the people, not the other way around, and public records play a huge part in that," Fater said. "I appreciated Mr. Britt speaking to that." News Media Workshop offers storytelling tips from pros Conference participants from around the state listen to a session at the News Media Workshop June 19 at the University of Indianapolis. See Workshop, page 9 HSPA Executive Director Steve Key and keynote speaker Katie Rogers listen to audience questions. Rogers, a White House correspondent for the New York Times, talked about covering the Trump administration.

• Cover