Noteworthy new reports from the Congressional Research Service that have not been made readily available to the public include the following (all pdf).
“Hezbollah: Background and Issues for Congress,” October 8, 2010.
“Pakistan’s Nuclear Weapons: Proliferation and Security Issues,” October 7, 2010.
“Burma’s 2010 Election Campaign: Issues for Congress,” October 6, 2010.
“Drug Courts: Background, Effectiveness, and Policy Issues for Congress,” October 12, 2010.
“Environmental Laws: Summaries of Major Statutes Administered by the Environmental Protection Agency,” October 8, 2010.
“Defense Surplus Equipment Disposal: Background Information,” October 6, 2010.
“The National Security Council: An Organizational Assessment,” September 23, 2010.
The clearinghouse will also neutrally mediate the assignment of auditors to audits—strengthening independence, trust, and ethical governance across the AI ecosystem.
The potential implication of these evidence gaps becomes more consequential when you look at how institutions actually make decisions day to day.
Every new institution inherits something – existing incentives, existing staff, decades of prior investment that shaped what’s possible.
This is not the first time Google has agreed to censor imagery at the behest of governments, but be warned: obfuscation at this broad level poses a direct threat to the public’s ability to monitor and scrutinize government operations.