Unlocking Big Government Data: Whose Job Is It? - Global-cio -
abernard102@gmail.com 2012-10-02
Summary:
"... Privately owned data, such as tweets and Facebook posts, aren't under government control, so we can expect the owners of that data to make it available--but at a price, and only to select partners. That is, probably not you. In contrast, most large government datasets are open to anybody via Freedom of Information Act requests, often at a nominal processing cost. The problem with public data is that it can be an excruciating exercise to actually GET it. Exceptions include Data.gov on the federal level and Open Data Philly on the city level. But in most cases it's a painful process for both government workers and the requester because the workers don't have the automated processes to categorize and extract the open data (for example, business license data) and leave out the closed data (for example, social security numbers). Depending upon the volume of requests and workload, the requester can wait a long time for the data while the government employee does lots of fun manual extraction... Open data is unquestionably good for society, but, assuming you're not a socialpreneur, why does this matter to you and your company? Well, as a 'data economy' article in Slate magazine recently noted, 'If big data is a strategic resource, as has been suggested, then many national and state governments have public reserves that can be tapped for the public good in this young century's version of the industrial revolution.' You don't think government data can be leveraged to create value for your company or community? Two words: Google Maps... So whose responsibility is it to open up this data, government employees'? Yes, to a point. After a seven-year tour in government IT ... I have witnessed the inventiveness of some of the best and brightest in government IT. Some of these folks have won awards ... They're mission-focused and want to do the right thing. But when it comes time for elected boards to choose between funding 'fix the bridge,' 'buy new patrol cars...' buying tools for IT usually gets short shrift... Government IT pros can't always do it alone. That's where organizations such as Code for America come in. It's sort of a Peace Corps for programmers ... The Code for America Brigade appeals to all walks of life--to coders, yes, but also to people interested in liberating the civic data necessary to power those apps. There's a reason the director of the Brigade is keynoting Oct. 16's Open Data Day in North Carolina. It's also about companies that leverage open government data, like those in the media industry. Some of them understand the importance of supporting organizations such as the Knight Foundation, which recently recognized developers at six ventures that bring data to the public ... I don't just think private-sector organizations getting involved in this big open government data mess is just a good idea. I think it's a necessity. It's not government that's responsible for open data--it's us. All of us. Jen Pahlka, in a TED talk that generated more than half a million views on TED.com, notes that government is 'this thing that we own and pay for,' and if we consider it as something that's working against us, we're disempowering ourselves. Amen to that."