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Government, Economic, Financial,
and Math Information

10K Wizard
10K Wizard was formed in April of 1999 when Harvard Business School graduate and investment advisor Martin Zacarias,and former high-speed game software developer and chief systems architect, Kee Kimbrell recognized the need for expanded coverage and advanced search capabilities of the SEC database. 10K Wizard developed a proprietary software to search through the myriad of information available to the public via the SEC's EDGAR (Electronic Data Gathering, Analysis and Retrieval) system. The results? Real-time access and the unique ability to perform keyword searches on up-to-the-minute SEC filings.

Bureau of Economic Analysis
Provides national, regional, and international information on economic growth, regional development, and U.S. position in the world economy. Excellent demographic databases available.

Business Resources Index
From the American Press Institute, a compilation of sites categorized by topics including: proxies, backgrounding companies; stocks, markets; banking, government sites; charities, non-profits; tax; and small business.

Catalogue of U.S. Government Publications
The Catalog of U.S. Government Publications provides an index to print and electronic publications created by Federal agencies. When available, links are provided to the full-text of these publications. Additionally, the locate libraries feature enables users to find libraries by state or area code that can make print publications available for their use. Coverage begins with January 1994. New records are added daily.

Census Bureau
Includes vast quantities of information including economic census, survey of business owners, and foreign trade.

CFA Institute
CFA Institute is a nonprofit professional association that administers the Chartered Financial Analyst (CFA) curriculum and examinations and awards the CFA designation. CFA Institute also sets standards of ethics and professional excellence; advocates for fair and transparent capital markets; publishes research; conducts professional-development programs; and sets voluntary professional and performance-reporting standards for the investment industry. Of special interest to B2B journalists are the organization’s continuing series of workshops and webcasts that help editors and writers understand financial and earnings statements and other business-related information.

Cost of Living Calculator
This utility allows you to convert dollar values between any two years to adjust for inflation. Reporting historical dollar amounts without adjusting for inflation is boneheaded and sloppy, says the site. Good journalists don't do it once they know better.

EconData
A guide to regional economic activity. EconData has 1,000 links to socioeconomic data sources, arranged by subject and provider, pointers to the Web's premiere data collections, and its own list of the 10 best sites for finding regional economic data. Click here to learn more.

Economic Statistics Briefing Room
Access to latest reports on U.S. economic indicators, with links to information produced by a number of federal agencies.

EDGAR Online
Information on U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) filings. EDGAR Online is produced by Cybernet Data Systems, Inc. and is not affiliated with the SEC.

Federal Government Agencies
The directory is a partnership of Louisiana State University and the Federal Depository Library Program.

Federal Register
The Office of the Federal Register (OFR) provides ready access to the official text of Federal laws, Presidential documents, administrative regulations and notices, and descriptions of Federal organizations, programs and activities.

Federal Reserve
Contains all the information you need about the structure of the Fed, how it works, its policies and regulations, economic research and data, and publications.

Federal Web Locator
The Federal Web Locator is a service provided by the Center for Information Law and Policy and is intended to be the one stop shopping point for federal government information on the World Wide Web.

FEDSTATS
The granddaddy of federal sites, this site is maintained by the Federal Interagency Council on Statistical Policy maintains this site. A small sampling of the many agency web sites included:

• Bureau of Labor Statistics

• Bureau of Justice Statistics

• Bureau of Transportation Statistics

• Energy Information Administration

• Economic Research Service

• Environmental Protection Agency

• National Agricultural Statistics Service

• National Center for Education Statistics

• National Center for Health Statistics

FedWorld Home Page
Connection to resources and information on government agencies.

GuideStar
Calls itself he national database of nonprofit organizations. Provides information about the operations and finances of nonprofit organizations. Its vision is to create an interactive "marketplace of information" that connects nonprofit organizations, donors, foundations, and businesses.

Give.org
The BBB Wise Giving Alliance collects and distributes information on hundreds of nonprofit organizations that solicit nationally or have national or international program services. It routinely asks such organizations about their programs, governance, fund raising practices, and finances when the charities have been the subject of inquiries.

LexisNexis
The LexisNexis Group provides information to legal, corporate, government and academic markets, and publishes legal, tax and regulatory information, via online, hardcopy print and CD-ROM formats.

Math Mistakes
A site dedicated to the listing of mathematical mistakes made over and over by advertisers, the media, reporters, politicians, activists, and in general many non-math people.

ProfitCents Public
How can you write about a public company without a full understanding of the company's financial results? Using a tier-one feed from the SEC's EDGAR database, ProfitCents users can produce real-time, objective analyses of the operating performance of nearly every publicly traded company in the U.S. As soon as a company releases its earnings reports, you can receive up-to-date evaluations of its financial condition! The site uses traditionally accepted financial analyses, then translates the numbers into plain-language reports that you can quickly evaluate. Even better, the media can get a free, one year subscription!

Public Record Sources
This site points you directly to the agency that houses the record you need. It also provides access procedures, restrictions, and search fees. Information is gathered by contacting agencies quarterly to verify information. At no time is any data older than 12 months. Usually it? is 3 to 6 months old.

RobertNiles.com
Here, described in plain English, are some basic concepts in statistics that every writer should know.

Search Systems
Cllaims to be the largest directory of links to more than 25,000 free public record databases on the Internet. Find business information, corporate filings, property records, unclaimed property, professional licenses, offenders, inmates, criminal and civil court filings, and much more. Browse by geographic location or use the Public Record Locator to search for a type of public record in a specific area.

State and Local Government on the Net
The State and Local Government on the Net Directory provides convenient one-stop access to the websites of thousands of state agencies and city and county governments. Only pages that are controlled and managed by state and local government agencies are included.

Social Statistics Briefing Room
Access to current Federal social statistics on crime, demographics, education, and health.

Supreme Court
Site contains information on court opinions, docket, oral arguments, court rules, orders, briefs, and more.

U.S. Patent and Trademark Office
A great source for a look at what the future might bring and who might bring it.

Using Numbers
Journalists are often not "number people," but many of in their audience are. Mishandling numbers, especially statistics, no only leads to inaccuracy, it also suggests to the public a kind of damaging ignorance. Here are some basics: from how to tell if numbers are fair to how to use them and calculate with them. Topics include standard deviation, how poll sampling works, margin of error and confidence intervals.

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