[okforums-discuss] Project suggestion: quoting the powerful

Thu Feb 24 12:16:15 UTC 2005

Suggestion: Quoting the Powerful
...to collect (online) quotes from elected representatives (and others with power) which have been made outside formal arenas (Commons chamber etc)

Why: I've realised that you can tell just as much (and often more) about your MPs and councillors from what they say in speeches, interviews and press conferences, than you can from what they say in council meetings/ Parliament. (And it can be very fruitful to compare the two.) It would be a great supplementary resource for citizens.

Problems: This is (I think) almost impossible. But perhaps a good project to aim towards? There are obviously no clean ways in which such quotes are recorded. People with access can glean these quotes from broadcast transcripts, press cuttings, press briefing transcripts, speeches etc. It's a labour-intensive human-brain process. 

Any ideas? Do people think this would be useful? Does anyone have any ideas or know of any way in which any one of these quote sources could be mined in an automated way? Do you think it would work having a site where people could just dump quotes they have found/transcribed? Perhaps it's completely unrealistic?! 

Thanks for your thoughts

Natasha (Phillips) 