Study On US Citizen's Right To Know And Its Protection

The right to know plays a very important role in modern society. It is the prerequisite of civil liberties. Only each citizen fully possesses and exercises the right to know, can he protect his rights and advantages to the full, and realize his liberty ail-roundly. The right to know is also the essential condition of democracy. Only each citizen knows government information and political activities fully, can he effectively participate in the political process, supervise the government, and guarantee the realization of People's sovereignty.The United States is the state that has provided the strongest protection for the citizens' right to know. After three centuries' development, US citizens' right to know gradually get the confirmation of state's law and be constantly strengthened. Now, the United States has formed the perfect system for protecting citizens' right to know which includes the government information opening, the government meeting opening, the legislative opening, and the judicial opening.This paper consists of three parts. The first part analyses the basic theory of the right to know, the second part detailedly studies the history of US citizen's right to know, and the final part ail-roundly expounds the protection of citizens' right to know in the United States. Readers maybe find the legal principle and cultural basis of US citizens' right to know, and understand the Western democratic politics which is represented by the United State.