Each county in the United States has a Clerk-Recorder's office or equivalent. These offices provide marriage licensing and notary services, as well as maintain archives of public records. Here's a short video of Mike Rice at the Alameda County Clerk-Recorder's office discussing how to navigate your way around the office's in-house index systems.
Read MoreTransparencyData.com Released for Combined State and Federal Campaign Contribution Data
Today, the Sunlight Foundation released TransparencyData.com which compiles federal data from OpenSecrets and state data from FollowTheMoney.org into a comprehensive and user-friendly search interface for researchers and journalists. Transparency Data currently provides access to state and federal campaign contributions, and will offer lobbying data within several weeks.
Read MoreThe Office of Congressional Ethics
The Office of Congressional Ethics (OCE) is an independent panel that reviews and investigates allegations of ethical misconduct within the US House of Representatives. At the end of its review process, OCE makes many of its reports (what OCE calls "referrals") and investigative materials available for public review creating a new repository for public records researchers.
Read MoreWhere to Find Consumer Product Safety Information Online
The recent Toyota recall was well publicized, but not all consumer product oversight matters will generate that kind of attention. Lack of press coverage shouldn't be misinterpreted as lack of available information.
Read MoreInternet Video Archives
The digitization of television and video clips enables websites to create video archives housing years of recorded footage typically searchable by program or topic. While some websites are oriented toward popular entertainment, there are several which emphasize news and political recordings that are indispensable for backgrounding politicians and other public figures. Here is an overview of some of the best resources for searching for videos of interest.
Read MoreDigital Information in an “Open Society”
"Data, data everywhere," a special report from The Economist on managing information is worth a look here. "The open society" segment of the special report makes a persuasive argument for the role open records and transparency play in accomplishing public policy goals.
Read MoreDouble-check the Big, Game-Changing Claims – Here’s Why
Yesterday, The New York Times ran a piece discussing the decision by Henry Holt & Company to stop printing and selling The Last Train from Hiroshima. Publishers have consistently claimed that fact checking book-length works is too cumbersome and that ultimately authors are responsible for the content of their work. Regardless of how the book publishing industry opts to come to terms with fact checking challenges, the Times piece contained a good rule of thumb for public records researchers.
Read MoreWhen Private Records Become Public Records
While the majority of public records begin as government documents, there are instances when private records are backed into the public record via court filings.
Read MoreGoogle Constantly Refining Search Algorithms to Provide Best Generalized Search Results
Last week we discussed some of the specialized and niche search engines that have emerged to compete with Google. This week an article in Wired explains how Google is continually refining its search algorithms to provide the best results of a generalized search engine.
Read MoreExpanding Search Engine Technology and Efficiency
As the amount of information available online increases and people become more reliant upon the Internet for information, technology companies are developing new features for search engines that can process an incomprehensible amount of data into organized, user-friendly results. New search features are constantly developed to deliver targeted results and ultimately make Internet research as efficient as possible.
Read MoreFOIA Appeals In a World of Diminishing Newsroom Budgets
he New York Times reported yesterday that despite reduced budgets, big media companies such as Hearst and the Associated Press continue to fund FOIA appeals and lawsuits.
Read MoreHyperlocal Web Sites Use Public Records to Provide Targeted Information
With the ever-increasing availability of freely accessible government datasets, developers are seizing opportunities to reprogram these public records into Internet applications that are more relevant for the general public. One such trend is hyperlocal news web sites, such as EveryBlock. EveryBlock aggregates (and makes searchable) civic information from multiple public records dataset.
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