Future of CRS Panel Meeting, April 11 UPDATE: postponed
UPDATE: The "Future of CRS" panel discussion originally set for this Monday, April 11th, is postponed because of the possible government shutdown. Check http://transparencycaucus.org/ for the latest news. This is an open meeting in D.C. "Future Of CRS" Panel Discussion Set For 4-11
Congressional Research Service director Dan Mulhollan's retirement on April 2 -- after running Congress' think tank for 17 years -- raises questions about the agency's policies and future. Is CRS meeting the needs of Congress? Has its analytical expertise eroded? Are CRS Reports as relevant, accurate, and understandable as they need to be, and should they be available to the general public? What does a 21st century research service look like? The Advisory Committee on Transparency will host a panel of experts to discuss the future of CRS on April 11th at 2pm in Rayburn 2203.Continue reading
Update on cuts to open government web sites
Have we saved the data? Maybe, by Daniel Schuman, Sunlight Foundation, (April 5, 2011).
Online transparency programs will enjoy a reprieve from the chopping block if the short term budget resolution posted late last night by House Republicans were to become law. The latest proposal appears to continue funding the sites at the same level as last year instead of cutting them to virtually nothing as was originally proposed.... But we're not out the woods yet.... This short term continuing resolution would keep the government’s lights on through April 15 and fund the Department of Defense to the end of the year, but contains a number of provisions that many political leaders will be reluctant or unwilling to accept....More on the proposed legislation: G.O.P. Budget Proposal Cuts $5.8 Trillion in Spending, By CARL HULSE, New York Times (April 5, 2011). Continue reading
Using Wikipedia to promote digital collections
Wielding Wikipedia, by Steve Kolowich, Inside Higher Ed. (April 5, 2011).
With its magnetic pull on students who might have otherwise burrowed into the stacks, Wikipedia might seem like a library's natural enemy. But to librarians at the University of Houston the popular online encyclopedia has become a valuable ally, helping to draw more eyes to their digital collections than ever before. At the annual meeting of the Association of College and Research Libraries here on Friday, the Houston librarians explained how they had recently enlisted a student, Danielle Elder, to evangelize the content of their Digital Library on Wikipedia, the eighth most popular website in the world, to see if it would improve exposure for their artifacts. Wikipedia quickly became the No. 1 driver of web traffic to Houston's online collections, surpassing both Google and the university's home page.Continue reading
GSA Turns To GPO’s Partnership With Google To Offer Free Government Publications Online
Press Release from GPO: FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: April 5, 2011 No. 11-17 GSA TURNS TO GPO'S PARTNERSHIP WITH GOOGLE TO OFFER FREE GOVERNMENT PUBLICATIONS ONLINE WASHINGTON-The U.S. General Services Administration (GSA) is working with the U.S. Government Printing Office (GPO) and GPO's relationship with the Google Book Partner Program to make popular Government publications available for free electronic download through Google. The program is making available 100 consumer-related Federal Government publications distributed through GSA's Federal Citizen Information Center (FCIC) on Google Books. The public can view and download PDF copies of these publications on desktops, laptops, and various e-readers. The FCIC plans to add more consumer publications to the program. The public can also order hard copies of the publications on Google Books and through the GPO's Online Bookstore. The FCIC will coordinate delivery through GPO's Public Documents Distribution Center in Pueblo, Colorado. "GPO and GSA have been partners in distributing federal government publications to the American people for 40 years," said GPO's Business Products & Services Managing Director Herb Jackson. "GPO looks forward to expanding that partnership with Google in providing the public with free electronic access to popular consumer publications." ... Continue reading
Open Government and Watergate
Today, when there are active threats to open government and OMB is preparing to shut down several important open government web sites, it is a good day to remember why we have several of our most important open government laws. The Nixon Presidential Library and Museum has opened a new Watergate exhibit. Jon Wiener, who teaches history at UC Irvine and is a contributing editor to The Nation, tells the story:
- At the new Watergate Gallery, the truth finally wins out, By Jon Wiener, Los Angeles Times Op-Ed, (April 5, 2011). The Nixon Presidential Library and Museum's original exhibit about Watergate, designed in 1990 by Nixon loyalists before the National Archives took over operation of the library, explained Watergate as a third-rate burglary exploited by the president's enemies to reverse the results of the 1972 election. Now, with the long-awaited opening of the library's new Watergate exhibit, the public finally has a museum that tells the full story... ...Textbooks and journalists almost always conclude with Ford's pardon of Nixon. But the Nixon Library goes one big step further, closing with the legislation that resulted from Watergate: the broadening of the Freedom of Information Act to give individuals and journalists more tools to uncover government abuse of power; the Presidential Records Act, which forbids presidents from destroying their records; the creation of the Federal Election Commission to monitor campaign finance; and the Ethics in Government Act, which established the office of the special prosecutor. [emphasis added]