Stimulus resources

Citation

Latham, B. (2009), "Stimulus resources", Reference Reviews, Vol. 23 No. 5. https://doi.org/10.1108/rr.2009.09923eag.001

Stimulus resources

Article Type: Eye on the net: new and notable From: Reference Reviews, Volume 23, Issue 5

Stimulus resources

One wonders if lawmakers had any idea of myriad double-entendre opportunities they were providing when they chose to use words like “stimulus package” to describe attempts to ameliorate the struggling economy. Still, this is, after all, a professional publication, so through a monumental act of willpower, I will refrain. But do not think I was not sorely tempted.

With all this talk of economic stimulation, information specialists are themselves struggling to compile lists of resources to meet informational requests about the current financial crisis. Users may want to start their search (especially if they are in the mood to provoke an attack of narcolepsy) with the actual (federally authenticated) text of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (http://frwebgate.access.gpo.gov/cgi-bin/getdoc.cgi?dbname=111_cong_bills&docid=f:h1enr.pdf). The next stop users will want to make is the Recovery.gov web site (www.recovery.gov/). This site, set up and maintained by Obama’s administration, is slated to feature information about the Act, including where and how much federal funding is spent. Since it is fairly early in the game, the site currently provides only projections – which states and entities are due to receive what allocations from certain agencies. But as the site assures users, “As money starts to flow, far more data will become available”.

Another frequently updated site with a large amount of useful information is the New York Times Economic Stimulus subject page (http://topics.nytimes.com/topics/reference/timestopics/subjects/u/united_states_economy/economic_stimulus/index.html). This page provides a good detailed summary of current economic stimulus measures and the history immediately preceding them, in straightforward and easily understandable terms. It also provides links to all kinds of articles and video on this topic. Other useful sites which provide a one-stop shop for information on this topic include two recently launched subject pages by Colorado State University Libraries (http://libguides.colostate.edu/financialcrisis) and Mississippi State University Libraries (http://guides.library.msstate.edu/economic_crisis).

There is also an interesting resource called Stimulus Watch (www.stimuluswatch.org). This watchdog wiki site enlists the help of John Q. Citizen – users are encouraged to rate the projects slated for federal funding. The site provides a list of the proposed “shovel-ready” projects and how much these projects are requesting in funding from the federal government. It is keyword searchable, as well as supporting browsing by state and city. Once users find out about the projects which concern them, they can vote on whether or not they believe it is critical, edit the points in favor or against, and post comments about the project.

Also of interest, especially to those who have access to LexisNexis products, is LexisNexis’s subject wiki on the economic crisis (http://wiki.lexisnexis.com/academic/index.php?title=Economic_Crisis_2008). This site provides a fair amount of free information, and also provides pathfinders showing users with access to LexisNexis Statistical DataSets, Congressional, Academic, and UPA databases how to get started researching the topic in these products.

Bethany LathamInternet Editor, Reference Reviews and Assistant Professor and Electronic Resources/Documents Librarian, Jacksonville State University, Jacksonville, Alabama, USA