Capital Research Center conceived of this project after identifying a need for more fact-based, accurate descriptions of all of the various influencers of public policy issues. Many so-called “watchdog” groups are instead opponents of the outlets they are watching. Armed with 30-years of research and data on advocacy organizations, foundations, and donors, CRC utilizes a universe of well-trained contributors to help build the individual and organizational profiles that populate the website.
CRC has a perspective on the public policy process as well, but this resource is more important than that. We let the information speak for itself—information that frequently is not cited in reports about these individuals and organizations.
InfluenceWatch strives to be comprehensive, and profiles are frequently updated and written in a manner that’s accurate and measured. InfluenceWatch brings unprecedented transparency to the funding, motives, and interconnections of the entities profiled.
The InfluenceWatch team constantly edits published profiles to present up-to-date facts, add new connections, provide more information or context, improve sources, and otherwise strengthen the value of all of the information on the website.
The increasing risk that the Supreme Court will overturn federal constitutional abortion protections has refocused attention on the role digital service providers of all kinds play in facilitating access to health information, education, and care—and the data they collect in return.
In a post-Roe world, service providers can expect a raft of subpoenas and warrants seeking user data that could be employed to prosecute abortion seekers, providers, and helpers. They can also expect pressure to aggressively police the use of their services to provide information that may be classified in many states as facilitating a crime.
Whatever your position on reproductive rights, this is a frightening prospect for data privacy and online expression. That’s the bad news.
The SANS Institute's sample security policy documents, which are free to use as frameworks or templates for more specialized security policies.