Democracy Wire

Welcome to the inaugural issue of Democracy Counts, a monthly publication to update advocates, media, and interested persons on the latest census news, provide resources for advocates, and connect the census to issues you care about.

Americans rely on a free, diverse, and independent media for the information they need to make informed decisions at election time. But every week brings more bad news for those of us who worry that our communications ecosystem is being pushed to the point of collapse. It’s not that we ever had a perfect communications world—far from it—but what we had at least provided a foundation upon which the diverse voices of democracy could contend and build.

Americans understand why the First Amendment contains both our free speech and a free press as fundamental to our democracy. We must have information we can rely on to make informed decisions and cast informed ballots to determine the future for our family and community.

Inspectors General are the people's watchdogs within government agencies and often the reason we know about government waste, fraud, and abuse. It's a concern then that 13 agencies lack IGs right now. A new report from the Bipartisan Policy Center makes recommendations for governmental oversight and the offices of IGs.

We should all be paying attention to more than just the issues before the Supreme Court and how this, or any, nominee might rule. Judicial ethics and how the justices and the judiciary conduct business deserve scrutiny too.

It was almost two years ago that we first became aware of attacks on our election system by Russia. As we approach 2018, Americans understandably want to know about cybersecurity, what is being done to strengthen the integrity of our elections. Today, a congressional briefing with leading experts makes these complex issues accessible and understandable. A link to a Facebook Live recording is available for you to watch and share with others.