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Daily Archives: September 10, 2017

New Report on Improving Effectiveness of Government Programs

“September 7, 2017 the House Ways and Means Committee Chairman Kevin Brady (R-TX) released the following statement in response to the release of the report of the Commission on Evidence-Based Policymaking:

“Taxpayers deserve to know that the programs they fund are working—especially when those programs are meant to help lift people out of poverty. But too often, Washington measures success based on how much government programs spend or how many people they serve, without knowing whether these programs are really making a difference. By implementing the Commission’s recommendations to better share data and more rigorously evaluate our efforts, Congress can make sure we’re funding anti-poverty programs that work, that we’re helping those truly in need, and that taxpayer dollars are being spent in a way that makes a real difference in people’s lives. I look forward to working with my colleagues to implement these recommendations because doing so will help us hold programs accountable to deliver real results for the American people.”

Background:

The Commission on Evidence-Based Policymaking was established by the bipartisan Evidence-Based Policymaking Commission Act of 2016 (P.L. 114-140), sponsored by Speaker Paul Ryan (R-WI) and Senator Patty Murray (D-WA), and signed into law by President Barack Obama on March 30, 2016. The 15-member commission, consisting of individuals with expertise in program administration, data analysis, privacy protection, and academic research, was tasked with developing a strategy to increase the availability and use of data to build evidence about the effectiveness of government programs.

CLICK HERE to read the full report.”

How We Can Filter Fake News and Make Media More Trustworthy

How We Can Filter Fake News and Make Media More Trustworthy [includes link to the video interview] By Singularity Hub – Sep 07, 2017 – “In an interview at Singularity University’s Global Summit in San Francisco, web pioneer Craig Newmark talked entrepreneurship and his work to make journalism more trustworthy. Newmark founded Craigslist in 1995 and… Continue Reading

AALL Calls on Federal Courts to Address PACER Fees

News release: “The American Association of Law Libraries (AALL) on September 6, 2017] filed an amici curiae brief with the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia, calling on the judicial body to ensure that the Administrative Office of the U.S. Courts (AO) makes electronic federal court records freely available “to the greatest extent… Continue Reading

Social activism in the US – Digital collection and primary sources

College & Research Libraries News, Vol 78, No 8 (2017) – Internet Resources – Jennifer Kaari – library manager at Mount Sinai West and St. Luke’s: “The United States is currently going through a time of increasing political and social activism, from the Black Lives Matter movement to health care activism. This has brought on… Continue Reading

Pew – Asian Americans – A Diverse and Growing Population

“The U.S. Asian population is a diverse one. A record 20 million Asian Americans trace their roots to more than 20 countries in East and Southeast Asia and the Indian subcontinent, each with unique histories, cultures, languages and other characteristics. The 19 largest origin groups together account for 94% of the total Asian population in… Continue Reading

Paper – Freedom of racist speech: Ego and expressive threats.

Freedom of racist speech: Ego and expressive threats. Mark H White, University of Kansas; Christian S Crandall, University of Kansas. J Pers Soc Psychol 2017 Sep 17;113(3):413-429. Epub 2017 Apr 17. Department of Psychology, University of Kansas. “Do claims of “free speech” provide cover for prejudice? We investigate whether this defense of racist or hate… Continue Reading

The Trace – independent, nonpartisan, nonprofit journalism startup dedicated to shining light on America’s gun violence crisis

“Every year in our country, a firearm is used in nearly 500,000 crimes, resulting in the deaths and injuries of more than 110,000 people. Shootings devastate families and communities and drain billions of dollars from local, state, and federal governments. Meanwhile, the problem of gun violence has been compounded by another: the shortage of knowledge… Continue Reading