自由、知情权和公共话语——透明化在公共生活中的作用

This speech was given by Joseph Stiglitz on January 27,1999 in Oxford. The topic was on a basic right to know in democratic societies. First he used two examples in public finance and monetary economics to illustrate the importance of transparency in public life. Then he went on to discuss the rationale for openness, concluded that openness is essential for public governance. He also analyzed the incentives and adverse effects for secrecy. He then focused on some exceptions on openness, pointed out that today even the most open governments in the West are far too secretive. In the end, he gave a brief investigation on the implementation of openness. As concluding remarks, he referred to the intrinsic value for greater openness, claimed that openness is one of the most important checks on the abuse of public responsibilities.