Topic: Government
Information technologies weave their way into every aspect of our personal, professional, and civic lives. There's a growing need for informed public discussion of their public policy implications. Princeton's Center for Information Technology Policy (CITP) is one emerging forum for that conversation. Ed Felten and David Robinson speak with host Jon Udell to explore the goals and activities of the CITP.
On this edition of Interviews with Innovators, host Jon Udell speaks with W. David Stephenson, who reflects on how Web 2.0 technologies -- and mindsets -- are transforming the relationship between citizens and governments.
Independence Year is the year between the next two Independence Days. The fireworks began on July 4th, 2008 at iYear.US. Independence Year (iYear) is a new way to interact with your government at every level. It's where you can gather or join a crowd around your concerns. Britt Blaser, Doc Searls, and Jon Udell, join Phil and Scott to discuss the project.
Joshua Tauberer is the creator and operator of govtrack.us, a website that helps people track the activities of the U.S. Congress. In this conversation with host Jon Udell he discusses his ongoing efforts to acquire official information from various sources, provide useful tracking and analytical services, and encourage citizen participation.
San Francisco's young and charismatic mayor, Gavin Newsom, has suffered his share of punches for taking bold positions on controversial issues. In this Stanford Center for Social Innovation sponsored audio lecture, Newsom tells of the courage and persistence it takes to make real social change as a leader. He outlines progressive reforms in areas such as education, health care, and business, and reflects on the personal and professional price paid for supporting one particularly contentious issue: gay marriage.
Ken Roth, executive director of Human Rights Watch, gives a thoughtful perspective on the "State of Human Rights" in the 70 countries where they work. In this audio lecture, he argues the biggest issue in human rights is the lack of leadership from governments that can exert a positive influence. He takes a critical look at the role of the United States and the European Union, in particular.
As another election approaches, a politicized debate is raging about voter fraud and voter suppression, in which neither side can agree on the nature of the problem. Susan Q. Stranahan reports that the real question remains unanswered: Are the systemic problems of the last two presidential elections likely to recur when the presumptive nominees, Republican John McCain and Democrat Barack Obama, square off in November?
When it comes to presidential elections, all politics is dirty. In this third report from the Center for Public Integrity's The Buying of the President series, Stephanie Mencimer, a reporter for Mother Jones, examines dirty tricks in politics, including recent rumors that Barack Obama is a practicing Muslim. Who are the opposition researchers or tricksters who dig up this dirt? Her investigation attempts to answer these questions and more.
While the female vote has always been important in modern elections, the 2008 Presidential candidates have found women to be an electoral hot commodity. Given that polls find many to be both independent and undecided, both sides must find ways to sway them. Charles Lane, PRX Election Curator, presents some speech examples from John McCain and Barack Obama, as well as Susan Kottler's review of the 2008 Presidential Bake-Off Cookies.
In this second installment covering the Center for Public Integrity's report on campaign spending, Sara Fritz, a veteran journalist who helped pioneer the campaign finance beat, discusses Section 527 groups and other independent organizations, who spend millions of dollars on advertisements and other election activities.
