Making Government Transparent and Accountable
The Sunlight Foundation uses cutting-edge technology and ideas to make government transparent and accountable. Underlying all of our efforts is a fundamental belief that increased transparency will improve the public's confidence in government
The Sunlight Foundation Blog
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NAPA Weighs In On Challenges Facing Administration
The National Academy of Public Administration, like many of us, is encouraged by the Obama administration’s promise to transform the culture and the day-to-day functioning of the federal government into a much more transparent, participatory, and collaborative reality.
The academy sees three challenges that are inhibiting a truly collaborative federal government: an outdated 20th Century approach to technology where each agency has their own rigid IT environment; an inability to relate data to information, and information to decision making; and a bureaucratic culture where strong incentives exist to protect institutions as opposed to allowing cooperation and innovation.
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Federal Agencies and Web 2.0
Elizabeth Newell, at GovExec.com, writes about how federal agencies are beginning to stick their toes in the social media pool. It’s beginning to dawn on agency leaders that when citizens search for government information, they will want to use the same systems they do in their everyday lives. But as David Herbert at the National Journal writes (reposted here by NextGov.com), many agencies still struggle to make connections online.
Newell cites the GSA’s GovGab, the Defense Department’s roundtable with military bloggers, and she referenced the growing list of federal agencies that post on Twitter. Herbert points to the TSA is an agency that gets it. The Evolution of Security blog is an effort by TSA to explain the bizarre airport security system and offer tips for travelers. The agency realizes that in the online world, “if you build it they will come” is not the way things work. At airport security lines they advertise their site with signs saying “Got Feedback?” The site has been up for a year and posts average 3,000 page views and 100 comments.
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GovTwit Directory
Enamored as I am by Twitter these days, here’s a useful item, a government twitter directory. BearingPoint, the McLean, Va., -based management and technology consulting firm, is compiling lists of Twitter links to state and local government, federal government, contractors , journalists and industry/academics. Might be nice to see this all in a widget.
And along the idea of sharing good information…over the weekend, John Wonderlich , Sunlight’s Policy Director, wrote about several lists he and his team have been compiling. For instance, they’ve just posted at Congresspedia a list of access points for House of Representatives Web publications and primary source information that affects the House, with a description of the content each one provides. He’s working on a Senate version too.
