At a time when our government is keeping more and more secrets, POGO conducts journalistic investigations to shed light on government activities, create vigorous public debate, and foster opportunities for reform. POGO does so by taking on broad-scale, intractable problems which harm the nation but which would go unaddressed without an aggressive journalistic approach.
In recent years, growing partisan rancor and ideological conformity have threatened to quash legitimate problem-solving in the nation’s capital. In order to counter this threat, POGO approaches its investigations with an independent, non-partisan eye. POGO also embraces bi-partisan collaboration toward reform of the government.
| 2007 Accomplishments |
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| CONTRACTOR OVERSIGHT |
| Federal Contractor Misconduct Database Launched |
| Contracting Reforms Enacted In Legislation. |
| Comments On Federal Regulatory Changes. |
| New Truman Commission. |
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| OPEN GOVERNMENT and ACCOUNTABILITY |
| Congressional Oversight Training Seminars Launched. |
| Whistleblower Protections For Department Of Defense Personnel. |
| Whistleblower Protections for Federal Employees. |
| Tackling Homeland Security Abuse of Secrecy. |
| Transportation Budget Secrecy. |
| Federal Whistleblower Agency Placed Under Investigation. |
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| DEFENSE AND NATIONAL SECURITY INVESTIGATIONS |
| Helicopter Requirements Weakened to Benefit Contractor. |
| Missile Defense Investigation. |
| F-22 Corrosion. |
| MRAPs/Rapid Procurement System. |
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| NUCLEAR SECURITY INVESTIGATIONS |
| Nuclear Weapons Complex Begins to Shrink. |
| POGO Exposes Lax Security at Peachbottom Nuclear Power Plant. |
| International Panels Addressed. |
Outreach
POGO's research and products are regularly used by news media, Members of Congress and their staff, nonprofits, and government agencies.
News Media. News coverage of POGO’s research and products almost doubled from 2005. This year the average monthly mentions in newspapers were 62 for a year’s total of 753. In the past year, POGO has worked regularly with major TV news outlets (e.g. ABC, NBC, CBS, CNN), as well as newspapers (e.g. Washington Post, Wall Street Journal, New York Times, Los Angeles Times, USA Today), news magazines (e.g. Business Week, Time, U.S. News & World Report), trade publications (e.g. Defense News, Inside Energy), and radio shows (National Public Radio). POGO particularly works closely with investigative reporters on larger in-depth pieces, helping them to gain access to documents and experts to inform their coverage.
Congress. Because of the quality of its investigations, POGO regularly is asked to testify before Congress and, since January 2007 has done so seven times. In addition, many Members of Congress use POGO-generated information in their statements and to inform their efforts. POGO's Congressional Oversight Training Series (COTS) is a monthly training for Congressional staff on the nuts and bolts of how to conduct oversight. These bipartisan sessions are regularly attended by 40 to 50 staffers from the House and Senate.
Government Agencies. POGO regularly works with investigators and staff members at agencies such as the White House, Government Accountability Office, Congressional Research Service, Nuclear Regulatory Commission, Department of Energy, Office of the Secretary of Defense, and the Defense Department's Office of Testing and Evaluation, a weapons watchdog. POGO promotes its findings to those agencies and encourages them to investigate issues POGO has identified.
The Public. POGO's web site has become an important tool to reach the public directly. Currently, the POGO web site (www.pogo.org) receives approximately 1.5 million hits annually and well over 100,000 total visitors monthly. The unique format of POGO's Blog which receives around 15,000 visitors monthly, allows POGO to engage in dialogue with the public, media and experts on the various issues POGO investigates.
How POGO Evaluates its Success
POGO evaluates its success by whether or not policy reforms or spending cuts have been implemented. Sometimes these reforms take a number of years to achieve because of the numerous potential obstacles.
