Cornell Law Library's InSITE Website Reviews

Reviews published in the October 20th, 2008 issue of InSITE:

• Civil Rights Digital Library
• Internet Law Treatise (beta)
• NationMaster.com
• Project Vote Smart: the Voter's Self-Defense System

Civil Rights Digital Library
The Civil Rights Digital Library (CRDL) is a collaborative venture by Georgia libraries, educational and humanities institutions, and the University of Georgia media archives to make primary material about the Civil Rights Movement of the 1950s and 1960s available on the Web.  The CRDL has three components: 1) a digital video archive; 2) a portal connecting to related digital collections from 76 content partners; and 3) resources for educators.  Researchers can either search or browse the collections. The default search is a basic keyword search.  Sophisticated searches can be undertaken using an advanced search that features Boolean operators, field restrictions, and parameters restricting searches to a specific institution, specific collection, date range, or media type. Although the Help link is not prominently displayed, it provides easy-to-understand explanations on how to use both search types (although Basic Search tips are found under “Search Types” and not listed as a separate item like “Advanced Search.”)  The Browse feature covers the site content in a host of helpful ways by dividing browsing into:“Events,” “Place,” “People,” “Topics,” “Educator Resources,” “Media Types,” “Contributing Institutions,” and “Collections A-Z.”  “Events”is organized by individual years spanning 1954-1968 and researchers can drill down to specific occurrences. Each “Event” page provides Background, Archival Collections and Reference Resources, and Educator Resources. “Place”browsing uses a graphical interface of a US map with pinpoints to areas of interest in each state.  “Topics” is divided into “people and communities” (such as community organizing, culture of the movement, white resistance) and “Tactics for Justice” (such as boycotts, mass protests, and voting rights.) Each “Topics” selection provides an extensive list of a variety of archival and reference resources, ranging from TV footage and photos to oral histories. The resources under “Media Types” reflect the impressive scope of the CRDL. Sound recordings, documents, books, newsletters, flyers, government records, legal documents, diaries, photos, cartoons are just some of the media in the library. Historical works, biographies, interviews, oral histories, and debates are some of the genres. The CRDL is a treasure trove of primary sources that highlights the many facets of this important social movement; the site is so well-organized that retrieving pieces of history is a simple process.[JC]

Internet Law Treatise (beta)
The Internet Law Treatise (beta) is an open access project to create a collaborative treatise on Internet Law.  With the help of attorneys, law students, and other participant editors, it is based upon the Perkins Coie publication, Electronic Media and Privacy Law Handbook.  This work-in-progress is a Wikipedia-like e-book, with ongoing edits. Chapters cover Internet law as applied to defamation, content and speech regulation, copyright, trademark, misappropriation, electronic contracts, privacy and data collection, marketing issues, and jurisdiction.  It is browsable by a detailed table of contents, and keyword searchable.  Links are provided to statutory and case law citations where possible for one-click access to referenced primary sources.  The Internet Law Treatise is a good starting point for legal researchers needing background and analysis of this subject.[JJ]

NationMaster.com
NationMaster combines the power of CIA FactBook, UN statistics, Wikipedia, OECD, and more to create a comprehensive source for comparative statistical data and country information.  Statistics can be searched by subject or source, with graphed results where available providing side by side country comparisons.  Country profiles bring together CIA FactBook and Wikipedia articles, linking to national statistics.  The Encyclopedia is Wikipedia piped into the NationMaster interface.  The site also provides images of every country’s flag, and assorted maps of each country, organized alphabetically and geographically.  Forums provide a space for users to ask questions and discuss topics with a global focus.  Overall, it is a great resource for country information and statistics.  Google ads in the top banner and on the left side of the screen can be distracting, though ignorable.  The site is a product of Rapid Intelligence, an Australian web tech company, and Luke Metcalfe, with the stated purpose to “promote education and understanding about the world.” [JJ]

Project Vote Smart: the Voter's Self-Defense System
Project Vote Smart was born out of the frustrations experienced by Richard Kimball during his failed 1986 bid for the U.S.Senate.  Kimball’s handlers wanted him to attack his opponent, John McCain, but Kimball refused.  Instead, he resolved to provide a source for accurate information about those in office and those running for office.  The Project, operating from Montana, is staffed by interns and volunteers who work to provide an antidote to the “mudslinging tactics” of today’s political campaigns.  The Project receives no funding from corporations, PACs, or any entity that takes a position on candidates or issues.  The website provides extensive information on both elected and unelected officials.  Users will find biographical information, as well as issue positions, interest group ratings, and campaign finance data—the data is courtesy of the OpenSecrets site (annotated in v. 8, no. 9 of InSITE).  The centerpiece of the site is the issue position information.  The Project administers the Political Courage Test, which asks candidates what they will support, not what they will oppose.  Candidates are queried about numerous specific items that are categorized into several subjects from abortion to employment to welfare.  Candidates are also asked to identify their top two or three legislative priorities.  With its wealth of data, users can learn a great deal about both federal and state government officials. [MM]

InSITE contributors:  J. Callihan, J. Jones, M. Morrison, J. Pajerek (editor)

InSITE highlights selected law-related Web sites in two ways: as an annotated publication issued electronically and in print; and, as a keyword-searchable database. The law librarians at Cornell evaluate potentially useful Web sites, select the most valuable ones, and provide commentary and subject access to them. This information can be accessed via the channels below, in addition to this mailing list:

   1. Searchable database or by browsing current and archived issues on the web: InSITE home page   
   2. RSS feed
   3. Print format for the Cornell Law School community.