I want a world without secrets.

I used to work in Florida. In Lakeland. For the daily newspaper. The Lakeland Ledger. Writing about the citrus industry. And I rubbed some of the big-wigs the wrong way. Because I wanted openness. I wanted to know what was going on. So I could inform readers. The subscribers to the newspaper. Robert Rutledge was the chief executive officer of Florida Citrus Mutual, the growers' organization. And I know the board of directors had a right to meet in private. And they usually did. But I pushed for open meetings. So the citrus industry knew better of what was going on behind closed doors. Rutledge and his cronies didn't like that. But I had my news sources. And I found out things that Rutledge didn't want the public to know about. That's the way I operate. I want the sun to shine in. Florida has long touted itself as the sunshine state. But not when it comes to keeping the public informed. The Florida Citrus Commission, a state agency, was secretive, too. And so I took on the likes of its director, Homer Hooks. By developing more sources. Within the commission itself. Hooks didn't like that. All I can say is that's too bad. I'd rather live in a world without secrets. --Jim Broede