Disclosure Data Catalog, Federal Election Commission

"Each of the files listed here can be downloaded in either csv or xml formats. Each also has a metadata page that describes the information included and the structure of the file itself. There is a pdf version of each file if you need to print the information. You can also subscribe to RSS feeds for each of the files so you're notified whenever new data is available or a change is made."

Also see the Commission's Disclosure Data Blog where the FEC will post information about the files and its future plans. And: they say that "you can get help with any questions about the data we're providing here."

The National Security Archive at George Washington University announced its new blog today: Unredacted: The National Security Archive, Unedited and Uncensored. The announcement says:

The National Security Archive is pleased to open its virtual doors with a new behind-the-scenes blog, "Unredacted: The National Security Archive, Unedited and Uncensored,". The Archive's own experience with thousands of Freedom of Information Act and Mandatory Declassification Review requests provides a wealth of data and fundamental lessons that we hope to share with you.

"Unredacted" will highlight never before publicly seen government documents as part of our regular "Document Friday" series. The blog will feature commentary and analysis from our experts on current news stories, events, ongoing litigation and advocacy efforts, newly-released documents, and other hot topics. We will regularly highlight some of our top document collections -- including unpublished collections donated by top journalists and authors -- that are available to researchers and the public.

The new blog will also tell you more about the Archive's global activities, including reports from the field as Archive staff travel to document archives around the world, assist international courts and tribunals with human rights cases, support efforts to enact and implement freedom of information laws in other nations, and attend meetings and conferences with other NGO representatives and high-level government officials.

The Federal Communications Commission has a new blog: blog.openinternet.gov. The blog is intended to have "expert commentary from FCC staff on how best to preserve the Internet’s openness and questions that arise during this debate." And, in the first post on the site, FCC chairman Julius Genachowski says, "Our staff hopes to use this forum not only to share ideas but also to receive them. We encourage all visitors to weigh in with their own thoughts and engage in an open dialogue."

Want a flavor of the blog? Try this bit about network neutrality from a post by the Jon Peha, the FCC's Chief Technologist:

Back in the 1980s, I spent much of my time thinking about an obscure topic – how to manage the flow of packets around the Internet, particularly if anyone were ever crazy enough to try telephone-like or TV-like services over what was obviously just a computer network. Like most grad students, I thought my dissertation topic was important to everyone. Sometimes after parties, my girlfriend at that time would remind me that a handful of engineers might care about such things, but normal humans, including lawyers like her, never would. But two decades later, it was mostly lawyers who were grappling with critical decisions on this topic, while most engineers paid little attention.

The blog will also offer timely information on the FCC’s latest activities to preserve an open Internet.

The National Archives has started a blog, NARAtions, because, "we are hoping to talk with you about online public access to the records held by the U.S. National Archives and Records Administration (NARA)."

(Hat tip to Kate!)

This blog has been around for at least a year, but I hadn't seen it till recently. It looks worth a bookmark:

• Rumors, Myths, and Fabrications. Blogs at America.gov.

Examining rumors, conspiracy theories and false stories. Todd Leventhal, a State Department expert on these issues, discusses deliberate disinformation, unintentional misinformation, cautionary tales known as "urban legends," and widely believed conspiracy theories.

[Note to grammarians: Yes, I added the comma after "Myths" in the title. Could ... not ... control ... inner ... comma ... fanatic....]

The Minority Business Development Agency (Dept. of Commerce) started a blog, Minority Biz Blog, in March. "The purpose of this blog is to facilitate an ongoing dialogue on minority entrepreneurship and business in the United States."

Althought the blog is linked to from http://www.mbda.gov/blog/ , the actual blog is hosted at wordpress.com, not on a .gov server.

The Office of Science and Technology Policy (OSTP) now has its on blog, "a place where you can learn about and have real input into the policymaking process as it relates to science and technology."

OSTP Blog

And, yes, there is an RSS/ATOM feed!
http://blog.ostp.gov/feed/
http://blog.ostp.gov/feed/atom/

A new web page at whitehouse.gov for the White House Task Force on Middle Class Working Families has its own blog (but, oddly, no separate RSS feed!).

• A strong Middle Class

According to a press release:

The Task Force is a major initiative targeted at raising the living standards of middle-class, working families in America. It is comprised of top-level administration policy makers, and in addition to regular meetings, it will conduct outreach sessions with representatives of labor, business, and the advocacy communities. The Task Force will be chaired by Vice President Joe Biden. The Vice President and members of the task force will work with a wide array of federal agencies that have responsibility for key issues facing the middle class and expedite administrative reforms, propose Executive orders, and develop legislative and policy proposals that can be of special importance to working families.

Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton has posted her first message to Dipnote the Department of State blog:

Secretary Clinton: U.S. Strengthens Pacific Partnerships, Posted by Hillary Rodham Clinton on Feb 16, 2009 - 12:33 PM.

There is also a new Ask the Secretary site, desribed as an "online interactive forum that can allow you to connect with Secretary Clinton directly. While Secretary Clinton travels across the world, you can submit your questions for her using this form. Secretary Clinton will select various questions to answer and they will be posted to this website."

Update by Daniel 2/23/2009 - Visitors questions will be displayed at: http://www.state.gov/r/pa/ei/ask/secretary/117297.htm. Answers will also be available on that page. There will also be a link from the state.gov homepage. Thanks to the DipNote blogging staff for pointing this out.

As we see more government information move off the .gov domains and into the commercial sector, the problem of finding and identifying government information becomes more difficult.

As more agencies are blogging, one would hope that there would be a central registry of agency blogs. The closest I can find is the USA.gov listing, Blogs from the U.S. Government, which lists 38 links to active blogs. Some of those link to more than one blog, however (see for example, http://www.si.edu/blogs/default.htm), so the count is not complete.

Out of curiosity, I checked how many of the 38 links were not to .gov or .mil sites. There are 10, including two to Smithosonian's .edu sites and GPO's own FDsys blog:

* ASY Live Blog http://asylive.blogspot.com/ – The "ASY Live Blog," an extension of the Department of Defense America Supports You program, highlights the support supplied by citizens and corporations nationwide to our men and women in uniform and communicates that support to our troops.

* Energy Savers http://eere.typepad.com/energysavers/ – The Energy Savers Blog provides a place for consumers to learn about and discuss energy efficiency and renewable technologies at home, on the road, and in the workplace.

* Eye Level http://eyelevel.si.edu/ – This Smithsonian American Art Museum blog covers American art and the ways it reflects American history and culture.

* Future Digital System http://fdsys.blogspot.com/ – U.S. Government Printing Office blog about the Future Digital System program that will be a world-class information life-cycle management system

* Grants.gov http://grants-gov.blogspot.com – Updates for the grant community.

* Mount Rainier National Park Volunteers Blog http://rainiervolunteers.blogspot.com/ – Get the latest news about the volunteer program at Mount Rainier National Park in Washington.

* National Parks http://blog.nationalparks.org/ – The National Park Foundation enriches the connection Americans have with our National Parks.

* Pushing Back http://pushingback.com/blogs/pushing_back/default.aspx – Office of National Drug Control Policy blog to educate Americans about illegal drugs and the latest international, federal, state, and local efforts to reduce drug use

* Smithsonian Institution http://www.si.edu/blogs/default.htm – Bloggers offer insights and information about Smithsonian Institution exhibitions, events, collections, research projects, and more.

* Take Pride in America: The Blog http://takeprideblog.blogspot.com/ – Take Pride in America, a national partnership program aimed at increasing volunteer service on America's public lands, hosts this blog to empower volunteers from every corner of America to maintain and enhance our natural, cultural, and historical sites.

grants.gov, "a central storehouse for information on over 1,000 grant programs and provides access to approximately $500 billion in annual awards," started a blog back in August. It is available at at the commercial, (not dot-gov) site: http://grants-gov.blogspot.com/

I found both the grants.gov site and the blog a bit confusing. It was not clear to me who the audience was. Maybe I should have spent more time evaluating it. But this site has had its problems being user friendly. See Should Grants.gov Be Abolished? and Grants.gov is Windows-only.

Smithsonian: Blogs is a good place to find all the blogs, podcasts, and RSS feeds from the Smithsonian Institution.

Did you know that The Smithsonian Institution Libraries is participating in Library Thing? I didn't until I read it on the Smithsonian Libraries blog. (SIL Joins LibraryThing, Oct 1, 2008.) It is one of a dozen SI blogs.

And the podcasts look great! The Folkways Collection, Global Sound Live Vodcast Series, and more!

And, there are almost two dozen RSS feeds in addition to the feeds from the blogs and podcasts!

A tip of the FGI hat to GovGab blogger Jacob. He reminded me that this coming week the GovGab blog celebrates its first birthday.

The GovGab blog is brought to you by the same agency that brings us usa.gov, which I find as staggeringly useful as others find the Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy.

To celebrate this first birthday, each of the GovGab bloggers will blog about what the U.S. was like when they turned 1 year old. This sounds like fun. Since I'm subscribed to their RSS feed, I'll get to see every entry. How about you?

Two new blogs appeared on the USA.gov Blogs from the U.S. Government page recently:

• Arctic Chronicles, by Jessica Robertson, Public Affairs Specialist for the U.S. Geological Survey. She will be documenting her journey to the Arctic as she accompanies scientists on an expedition to map the seafloor.
• The Energy Savers Blog, which aims to provide "a place for consumers to learn about and discuss energy efficiency and renewable technologies at home, on the road, and in the workplace."

While the Energy Savers Blog is apparently provided by the U.S. Department of Energy's Office Efficiency and Renewable Energy (EERE), it is hosted on a .com website. That creates a variety of problems for long-term access and preservation. (See more examples of government information on .com sites here.)

Both blogs have RSS feeds.

I just found out that the Alaska State Library has a new blog called "Since you asked: questions and answers from the Alaska State Library." Way to go Daniel!!

There are a couple of library sites that I know of that are blogging their questions and answers. There's Radical Reference and Stanford Library's Information Center. Anyone else doing that? I had a brainstorm (or maybe a squall :-) ) that if there are lots of libraries publishing their questions and answers, we could build a Google custom search engine of all the library Q&A sites. It'd be the best Q&A site on the 'net (no offense Jessamyn @ ask.mefi :-) )!

Leave me a comment if your library is currently doing that or you know of a library doing that.