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August 09, 2007
Headlines - New GAO Reports on Defense Contract Management, NASA and Hurricane Relief Efforts
- Internet News Audience Highly Critical of News Organizations
- Report Highlights Surge in Net Traffic Driven By Demand for Video Content
- DHS Announces Predeparture Screening of International Passengers
- New Analysis of Freedom of Information Act Performance by Coalition of Journalists for Open Government
- Latest Bureau of Labor Statistics News Releases
- DOJ OIG Audit of Information Technology Studies, Plans, and Evaluations
- U.S. Census Population Statistics Indicate More Than 300 Counties Now "Majority-Minority"
- International Atomic Energy Agency Issues 2006 Annual Report
- National Assessment of Educational Progress - The Nation's Report Card: Economics 2006
 New GAO Reports on Defense Contract Management, NASA and Hurricane Relief Efforts August 9, 2007: "Chairman Waxman releases a GAO report [and a Fact Sheet: GAO Report on Iraq Oil Reconstruction] analyzing the Defense Department's decision to pay KBR nearly all of the $221 million in costs that the Defense Contract Audit Agency questioned during its audits of the Restore Iraqi Oil contract for reconstruction work on Iraq's oil infrastructure. The report finds multiple violations of federal acquisition regulations and procedures, placing millions of taxpayer dollars at risk and leaving questions unanswered." Internet News Audience Highly Critical of News Organizations Pew Research Center for the People and the Press: Views of Press Values and Performance: 1985-2007 "The American public continues to fault news organizations for a number of perceived failures, with solid majorities criticizing them for political bias, inaccuracy and failing to acknowledge mistakes. But some of the harshest indictments of the press now come from the growing segment that relies on the internet as its main source for national and international news. The internet news audience – roughly a quarter of all Americans – tends to be younger and better educated than the public as a whole. People who rely on the internet as their main news source express relatively unfavorable opinions of mainstream news sources and are among the most critical of press performance." Report Highlights Surge in Net Traffic Driven By Demand for Video Content Press release: "New Millennium Research Council Analysis report finds growing Internet traffic, driven by online video, requires ongoing investment in new capacity and intelligent networks." The Never Ending Rush Hour - Internet Traffic Growth Requires Continual Investment in Capacity and Innovation in Network Management, August 9, 2007 (21 pages, PDF) DHS Announces Predeparture Screening of International Passengers Press release: "The U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) announced today steps that will strengthen aviation security through uniform and consistent passenger prescreening against government watch lists. DHS is publishing two regulations [137 pages, PDF] which will initiate these changes: (1) Advance Passenger Information System (APIS) Predeparture Final Rule, which enables DHS to collect manifest information for international flights departing from or arriving in the United States prior to boarding; and (2) Secure Flight Notice of Proposed Rule Making (NPRM), which lays out DHS plans to assume watch list matching responsibilities from air carriers for domestic flights and align domestic and international passenger prescreening. Both programs carry out 9/11 Commission recommendations." New Analysis of Freedom of Information Act Performance by Coalition of Journalists for Open Government " Still Waiting After All These Years, a new analysis of Freedom of Information Act performance by the Coalition of Journalists for Open Government, shows that service continues to frustrate requesters, despite a presidential directive ordering agencies to improve agency response. Over the past nine years that agencies have been reporting performance data, the number of FOIA requests processed has fallen 20%, the number of FOIA personnel is down 10%, the backlog has tripled, and the cost of handling a request is up 79%. (8/8/07)" A Further Look at the Performance Records (22 pages, PDF) Performance by Year, Category U.S. Census Population Statistics Indicate More Than 300 Counties Now "Majority-Minority" Press release: "Nearly one in every 10 of the nation's 3,141 counties has a population that is more than 50 percent minority. In 2006, eight counties that had not previously been majority-minority pushed the national total to 303, the U.S. Census Bureau reported today." International Atomic Energy Agency Issues 2006 Annual Report IAEA Annual Report for 2006 >> Table of Contents with section by section access in PDF >>> Full version of the report (103 pages) National Assessment of Educational Progress - The Nation's Report Card: Economics 2006 " The Nation's Report Card informs the public about the academic achievement of elementary and secondary students in the United States. Report cards communicate the findings of the National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP), a continuing and nationally representative measure of achievement in various subjects over time. The Nation's Report Card compares performance among states, urban districts, public and private schools, and student demographic groups." The Nation's Report Card: Economics 2006: "This report presents results of the first ever National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP) U.S. economics assessment in 2006. National results for a representative sample of students at grade 12 are reported in terms of students' average economics score on a 0–300 scale, and in terms of the percentage of students attaining each of three achievement levels: Basic, Proficient, and Advanced. The overall national average score was set at 150." Browse the Executive Summary of the report Download, view and print the complete report as a pdf file
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