You are browsing the archives of March 2010.

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.

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.

“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.

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.

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.