A public service announcement from actor and Freedom of the PressFoundation board member John Cusack: It’s time to drop the paywalls for Freedom of Information Act reporting. We're living through unprecedented times in which truth is under attack. The executive branch isn’t just attacking the press — it’s gaslighting the public. Documents disappear. Facts get rewritten. A so-called “Department of Government Efficiency” is doing its best to keep you in the dark. That’s not efficiency. That’s erasure. But journalists are holding the line — reporting the truth with courage, no matter the cost. Look, we get it. Reporters need to be paid. Newsrooms need to survive. But here’s the reality: The news business isn’t just any business. It’s enshrined in the First Amendment and serves a vital role in our democracy, or what’s left of it anyway. That’s why we’re calling on every newsroom to drop the paywalls on public records obtained through FOIA. The stakes couldn’t be higher. The public has a right to know when public officials are lying, when corporations cut sweetheart deals, when unscientific policies put lives at risk. They are public records for a reason. They don’t belong behind a paywall. FOIA-based reporting is costly and time-consuming — but transparency builds trust. And trust leads to readership, which means more traffic and subscriptions. @WIRED did it. @404Mediaco did it. Now it’s your turn. Newsroom leaders everywhere across the United States: Step up, serve the public, and drop the paywalls for FOIA-based reporting.