The practice providing for more transparent government and engaging the watchdog function is known as

The practice providing for more transparent government and engaging the watchdog function is known as reporter's privilege.

Explanation:

There are many laws which protect the privacy rights of journalists. Reporter's privilege is also known as journalist's privilege in U. S. which is like reporter's protection under law from being forced to prove the sources of their private information.

Reporter is allowed to keep the name of their confidential sources private. This allows free flow of information. Journalists mostly depend on the informers to collect news from, so confidentiality is important for establishing a relation with the informer.