Descriptive assessment of information policy initiatives: The government information locator service (GILS) as an example

Abstract

This article demonstrates the use of a descriptive assessment of an information policy initiative using the Government Information Locator Service (GILS) as an example. The techniques discussed in the article include historical perspective, review of the key policy instrument, descriptive modeling, side by side analysis, review of related policy instruments, literature review, and key issues. These techniques for information policy analysis provide a powerful means to assess a particular policy initiative. The approach is especially useful as a means to inform methodology and data collection techniques for empirical policy research.

Access denied: Improving federal policy on Web accessibility

“…McClure, Moen and Bertot (1999) demonstrated the usefulness of performing a descriptive assessment of an information policy initiative by using side‐by‐side analysis. This technique for information policy analysis provides a powerful means to assess policy initiatives.…”

“…In this study, the side‐by‐side policy analysis provided a descriptive assessment of the content of information policies, to include a detailed comparison between specific sections or criteria that are common to both policy instruments. McClure, Moen, and Bertot (1999) state that this side‐by‐side method of analysis offers an excellent shorthand and summary technique to descriptively assess and compare policy initiatives.…”

Mapping information policy frames: The politics of the digital millennium copyright act

“…Information policy is a disciplinary area in search of new methods of analysis. However, in the decade and a half since Hernon and McClure (1987) called for the establishment of a discipline of information policy analysis and the development of exploratory, descriptive, predictive, or ideal information policy models, few researchers have made this a priority (McClure, 1989; McClure, Moen, & Bertot, 1999). Part of the difficulty lies with the fact that the evidence of policy debates is most often in the form of documents such as congressional testimony, newspaper and journal articles, and legislative reports.…”

Modernizing Social Inclusion: A Look at John Carlo Bertot’s Contribution

“…Bertot's writings identify policy issues that might lessen the potential of public libraries to provide socially inclusive information services, such as drawing our attention to the way in which federal agencies rely on public and other libraries to support e-government services and provide users with government information, even when federal funding is not provided to support these library services Jaeger, Bertot, and Shuler 2010;Shuler, Jaeger, and Bertot 2010;Jaeger et al 2012). Bertot has coauthored a number of articles that identify and analyze current information policy, making the policies accessible to information professionals and researchers and encouraging public libraries and other public organizations to improve and extend the information services they provide (McClure, Moen, and Bertot 1999;Bertot and Moen 2000;McClure 2003, 2004;Jaeger, McClure, and Bertot 2005;Jaeger, Bertot, et al 2006; Hansen 2012). Thus, his works not only draw attention to the need for information agencies to provide timely and useful information to the public but also provide instruction on how the offered information might be used to improve both information services and social inclusion.…”