MAPLIGHT'S NEWLY LAUNCHED TOPIC PAGES ALLOW JOURNALISTS AND CITIZENS
TO SEARCH FOR BILLS BY ISSUE AREA
Transparency Tool Provides A Snapshot View of Bills by Issue Area (e.g., Technology and Communications) and the Campaign Contributions from Organizations Seeking to Influence those Bills
March 15, 2012–MapLight, a nonpartisan research organization that reveals money's influence on politics, is pleased to announce the launch of its newest transparency tool, Topic Pages, during Sunshine Week. The new tool allows journalists and citizens to search for and track bills by issue area in the U.S. Congress and in the California and Wisconsin State Legislatures. The tool combines all of MapLight's research data related to a specific topic area, giving journalists and citizens a snapshot view of the latest legislative and campaign finance data relating to a given topic–for example, Technology and Communications or Environmental Protection.
MapLight's Topic Pages Highlights:
- MapLight's latest research findings by issue area
- Industry groups supporting or opposing issue specific legislation
- Legislators who receive campaign contributions from interests associated with the issue area
- Industry-specific bills with campaign contributions given by supporting and opposing interests
A widget of the Topic page can be embedded on a blog or website and the most recent activity surrounding the issue area will update automatically. You can also opt to receive this information via RSS feed.
TOPIC PAGES EXAMPLE: TECHNOLOGY and COMMUNICATIONS
MapLight, a political money tracker, allows users to gain unique insights into how campaign contributions affect policy so they can draw their own conclusions about how money influences our political system.
A link to this press release can be found here.
Editor/Producer note: 15 minute tutorials are available to journalists who would like to learn more about using MapLight's transparency tools. Please don't hesitate to contact us.
Media Contact:
Pamela Heisey
c: 415-299-0898 | w: 510-868-0894 | e: pamela@maplight.org | t: @imonlyabill
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