Congresspedia
Encyclopedia
Congresspedia was a wiki
that ran from April 2006 to March 2009, designed to hold information on the workings of the U.S. Congress. It was fully contained within SourceWatch
, a larger wiki meant to document the people, organizations and issues shaping the public agenda. The Congresspedia portion of SourceWatch was publicly launched on April 26, 2006, with articles on each U.S. senator and U.S. representative. Congresspedia was a collaborative project of the Center for Media and Democracy
and the Sunlight Foundation
. In March 2009, the content of Congresspedia was moved to a wiki on the OpenCongress website, which is owned and funded by the Participatory Politics Foundation
and the Sunlight Foundation. The last editor of Congresspedia was Conor Kenny, who currently runs the corresponding OpenCongress wiki.
Wiki
A wiki is a website that allows the creation and editing of any number of interlinked web pages via a web browser using a simplified markup language or a WYSIWYG text editor. Wikis are typically powered by wiki software and are often used collaboratively by multiple users. Examples include...
that ran from April 2006 to March 2009, designed to hold information on the workings of the U.S. Congress. It was fully contained within SourceWatch
SourceWatch
SourceWatch is an internet wiki site that is a collaborative project of the liberal Center for Media and Democracy...
, a larger wiki meant to document the people, organizations and issues shaping the public agenda. The Congresspedia portion of SourceWatch was publicly launched on April 26, 2006, with articles on each U.S. senator and U.S. representative. Congresspedia was a collaborative project of the Center for Media and Democracy
Center for Media and Democracy
The Center for Media and Democracy is a non-profit investigative reporting group. The CMD gives analysis and opinion on policies such as the economy, environment and national security...
and the Sunlight Foundation
Sunlight Foundation
The Sunlight Foundation is a 501 educational organization founded in April 2006 with the goal of increasing transparency and accountability in the United States government....
. In March 2009, the content of Congresspedia was moved to a wiki on the OpenCongress website, which is owned and funded by the Participatory Politics Foundation
Participatory Politics Foundation
The Participatory Politics Foundation is a United States non-profit organization which jointly operates the OpenCongress.org website, which is intended to encourage transparency in lawmaking and to make it easier to engage with government. PPF operates OpenCongress together with the Sunlight...
and the Sunlight Foundation. The last editor of Congresspedia was Conor Kenny, who currently runs the corresponding OpenCongress wiki.
Purpose
The purpose of Congresspedia was to give citizens and media the ability to root out corruption and bring transparency to the system. It was based on a set of basic ideas:- A well-informed public is an essential ingredient of a healthy democracyDemocracyDemocracy is generally defined as a form of government in which all adult citizens have an equal say in the decisions that affect their lives. Ideally, this includes equal participation in the proposal, development and passage of legislation into law...
. - Most people feel they are not being well represented in Washington, while lobby groups and other special interests are. Despite this fact, however, most citizens could not name the specific interest groups that support and lobby their own representatives.
- The cost of winning election to Congress has become so expensive that most members raise funds year-round and work hard to maintain good relations not just with their constituents back home, but also with the "cash constituents" who supply the money for their campaigns. Everyone needs to know who these cash constituents are.
- Despite the constant flow of news from Washington D.C., much of what happens in the halls of Congress is not widely known outside of the nation's capital – and plenty of insiders like it that way.