Power to the people – or privacy in peril? : A linguistic-historical analysis of the meaning and boundaries of the Swedish principle of public access to official documents

Recently, we have seen a very disconcerting development in the world regarding how information of different kinds is valued and used. As “truth” is being increasingly questioned, one possible remedy is the right of access to official documents. This is the subject studied in this article. Such access constitutes an important element in our democratic society by providing citizens and the media the means to control their government. In Sweden, this right of access might also bring about detrimental effects for privacy, or personal integrity, however, due to the stipulations of the constitutional law, the Freedom of the Press Act. As will be outlined in this study, the meanings attributed to various expressions related to the right of access are unclear, so too are the boundaries that regulate the creation of official documents that may be requested as per the Freedom of the Press Act. This uncertainty could carry implications for personal integrity. The meanings and creation of official documents are thus at the heart of this investigation