Quartz: “Internal FBI documents released last week provide an intriguing peek at its private intranet for agents and other personnel. The system—called BU|NET, an apparent portmanteau of “bureau” and “network”—includes FBI.tv, a homegrown YouTube channel of sorts that includes live commercial programming (Fox News, MSNBC, CNN, and the Department of Justice’s in-house legal training network, Justice Television) as well as on-demand offerings like “Active Shooter–Managing the Mass Casualty Threat,” “Advancements in Maritime Intelligence,” “Boston Marathon Bombing Investigation,” and the admittedly unexpected “Bullying in the Workplace.” The documents were obtained by Russ Kick, a researcher and writer who runs AltGov2.org, an online repository of declassified files he has successfully pried loose through the US Freedom of Information Act (FOIA). He learned about FBI.tv only from a tranche of screenshots of the BUNET homepage he received in February…”
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Category Archives: Government Documents
USDA’s enforcement of animal welfare laws plummeted in 2018
Washington Post: “Two years ago, the Agriculture Department issued 192 written warnings to breeders, exhibitors and research labs that allegedly violated animal welfare laws, and the agency filed official complaints against 23, according to agency data. This year, those figures plummeted: The department had issued 39 warnings in the first three-quarters of fiscal 2018, and… Continue Reading
FOIA Suits Filed by Nonprofit/Advocacy Groups Double Under Trump
“Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) suits filed by nonprofit and advocacy organizations seeking access to federal government records have more than doubled since President Trump assumed office. This sudden burst in FOIA activity is a marked departure from the slower rise that had prevailed during much of the previous two presidential administrations. In FY 2001,… Continue Reading
Felony Disenfranchisement Reforms in 23 States Restored Voting Rights to 1.4 Million People
Sentencing Project: “As Florida voters consider an Election Day initiative to end the state’s lifetime ban on voting for citizens with a felony record, a new report from The Sentencing Project finds that since 1997 changes to state felony disenfranchisement laws across the country have restored voting rights to 1.4 million people. Expanding the Vote:… Continue Reading
Records Show DHS Ignored Privacy, First Amendment Threats of Media Monitoring Program
“EPIC has obtained records concerning “Media Monitoring Services,” a controversial DHS project to track journalists, news outlets, and social media accounts. The records, released in EPIC’s FOIA lawsuit against the federal agency, reveal that the DHS bypassed the agency’s own privacy officials and ignored the privacy and First Amendment implications of monitoring the coverage by… Continue Reading
These are the world’s most competitive economies
World Economic Forum: “How well countries adapt to the Fourth Industrial Revolution (4IR) will determine whether they ‘thrive’ or ‘stagnate’ and could further divide workforces and increase social tensions, according to the latest version of the World Economic Forum’s Global Competitiveness Report. Almost 40 years after its first annual assessment of the global economy, the… Continue Reading
Papers of President Theodore Roosevelt Now Online
Library of Congress – Collection Includes Letters, Personal Diaries, Speeches and White House Records of the 26th President and his Family: “The largest collection of the papers of President Theodore Roosevelt, documenting his extraordinary career in the White House and as vice president, governor of New York, and as a naturalist, writer and reformer, has… Continue Reading
FBI Releases Article on Defending Against Payroll Phishing Scams
US-CERT: “The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) has released an article on building a digital defense against phishing scams targeting electronically deposited paychecks. In these schemes, scammers use phishing emails to direct employees to fraudulent websites and collect their work credentials. Scammers then use victims’ credentials to replace legitimate direct deposit information with their own… Continue Reading
Federal Reserve Payments Study finds U.S. payments fraud a small but growing fraction of overall payments
Changes in U.S. Payments Fraud from 2012 to 2016: Evidence from the Federal Reserve Payments Study. October 2018: “The value of fraudulent noncash payments in the United States rose significantly between 2012 and 2015–outpacing growth in noncash payments overall, according to a new report based on Federal Reserve Payments Study data. The study’s survey of… Continue Reading
States With Online Voter Registration
ACLU: “Voting is the cornerstone of our democracy and the fundamental right that underpins all our civil liberties. That’s why it is so important to advance reforms to ensure that all eligible U.S. citizens who want to cast a ballot and participate in our elections are able to do so. One of the measures that… Continue Reading
Quickly Understand Complicated Ballot Initiatives in Your State Using This Site
lifehacker: “If the past few years have taught us as a nation nothing, it’s that we all should not only vote, but be informed about what we’re voting about. With all the information out there, figuring out what every item on the ballot means can be a daunting proposition. Vote Save America has created explainers… Continue Reading
Trump Administration Reform and Reorganization Plan: Discussion of 35 “Government-Wide” Proposals
Trump Administration Reform and Reorganization Plan: Discussion of 35 “Government-Wide” Proposals, CRS memorandum, July 25, 2018. “This memorandum provides a brief summary and some preliminary analysis of the Donald J. Trump Administration’s recent proposals to restructure and reform agencies, programs, and operations in the executive branch. Specifically, the memorandum covers the 32 proposals characterized by the… Continue Reading
