These are transcripts, with only some slight copy editis, of a Q&A (conducted via email) with the anonymous people who run, separately, these Baltimore websites, discussed here. (Be aware, we have no way of verifying who these people are!):

BALTILEAKS

What motivated you to start BALTILEAKS?



There is so much going on in Baltimore that doesn’t really get reported and that happens behind closed doors. We felt that the media didn’t really have the ability to do deep investigative reporting, in part because it has in some ways become part of the system.

Did somebody have a “that’s the last straw” moment and, if so, what was it?

Good question. There are three of us, and none of us really had that moment, but we felt like this was something that was missing that could be implemented readily. And by being anonymous and offering anonymity to our sources, we felt like we can develop sources differently from traditional outlets.

Is this modeled on WikiLeaks or any other site?

We’ve been following Wikileaks and feel like they’ve had some positive effects, but have also been embarrassingly self-promotional and dominated by Assange, to the point where it is a kind of cult of personality. We wanted to avoid all of that foolishness and be about only one thing: delivering information in the public interest in Baltimore.

What techniques are you using aside from publishing publicly-available data?

We are receiving a lot of tips and suggestions via email and comments on our site. We’re using those leads to track down other information. We are also accepting documents of all kinds and will be evaluating them on a case-by-case basis. We are not opposed to releasing privileged information, but we will perform legal due diligence before doing so; we want to protect our sources and ourselves.



How many tips have you received so far? How many of them have been worthwhile?

We have been in contact with at least 20 people offering specific information. Mostly, we have received good information. Some of it has been from people looking to promote their own blog posts and the like, and we don’t mind those kinds of submissions if the underlying information is valuable.

What kinds of data are you looking at and what else do you plan to publish?

Last week, we crowd-sourced an analysis of contributions to Mayor Stephanie Rawlings-Blake’s re-election campaign. Our interest there was in helping people understand how the system works. Dwight Eisenhower warned against a “military industrial complex.” In Baltimore, we have a “political-developer complex” that has emerged. It’s not enough to point fingers at the politicians – we need to understand the system and the economics behind it as a whole.

David Simon’s work with The Corner and The Wire was in a similar vein; he aimed to diagnose the city’s ailments through a fictionalized, narrative study of its economics. We aim to update that study with real information that citizens can use to make real decisions about what politicians and projects to support and which ones should be called out.



How will you measure success, what would you hope happens as a result of your efforts?

We will have been successful if we change even one outcome by way of exposing information, or enabling a connection to be made that might not have otherwise been made. So much of what happens in Baltimore happens because either no one is paying attention or because deals are made behind closed doors. We aim to shine a light on the city and show people that “the fix is not in.” We want to empower people with the idea that their actions can make a real difference in how things happen here in Baltimore.

Aren’t you worried about getting sued? What are you doing to prevent that?

We seek to be responsible citizens and journalists. We don’t aim to slander anyone or abuse our anonymity. We are anonymous primarily so we can remain free of the pressures of the system that limit some other journalists. If we receive information that has legal implications, we will seek reasoned legal guidance before releasing it. For us, the calculus is whether there is public benefit in releasing a piece of information. If there is and that benefit outweighs any legal risk or downside, we will push to release it. Obviously, we will have to evaluate that on a case-by-case basis.

There is also a great deal of good that we can do merely by collecting and organizing publicly available information. Public legal documents and online databases can be correlated to reveal powerful stories. We’re collecting all of the Board of Estimates meeting agendas and putting them online in one place. We can do all of that without breaking any laws and it has tremendous public value.

Can you describe your group in some way? Are there more than one or two of you?

There are three of us and we’re all deeply committed to Baltimore.

How can you guarantee anonymity to people who send you information?

There are no guarantees, obviously, but we hope that we can earn people’s respect and trust through our own efforts to maintain our own anonymity. We hope to build a track record that demonstrates our commitment to and respect for our sources.

How can people trust you if they don’t know you?

We recognize that dilemma and hope to earn people’s trust through our actions.

What can you do to reassure people that you do not have a political bias or that you’re not digging dirt to serve a commercial or political interest or personal vendetta?



We believe that our actions will demonstrate that our primary mission is to document the workings of the political and power construct in Baltimore. We believe that mission is in the public interest.

Does anybody with your group have ties to Otis Rolley or others trying to unseat a political incumbent?

Answering this question negatively or positively would undermine our anonymity. However, our group is made up of three people and each has an independent political voice. We’re more concerned with the health of the system as a whole.

Do you see your role as helping journalists, pushing them . . . or shaming them?

We only want to help. We recognize the great work that so many journalists are doing. But we’re able to do things that journalists simply can’t do without potentially losing access to sources. We hope to have a symbiotic relationship with the city’s journalists; our mission is probably not viable without their help, as we don’t have the resources to write and produce features.

How many journalists have contacted you and worked with you?

We have been in touch with at least eight journalists directly and many more are following us on Twitter.

Anybody else?



We have received at least four interview requests and also some interest from people in other US cities looking to replicate our model.

Are you making an attempt to verify information or make connections and inferences about quid pro quos and such?



We aim to verify as much as possible, but we are also willing to ask open questions with the hope of spurring others to do analysis and verification. We won’t publish as fact anything that can’t be reasonably verified.

We did extensive research on the campaign contributions spreadsheet and probably broke new ground in that analysis. We’ll be releasing a summary of that analysis soon.

What has your relationship been with the Sun so far?

Excellent. We’ve been in touch with several reporters there and everyone seems to be very supportive. We’re thrilled about that.





What kind of reaction have you gotten so far?

All positive. No negative. We’re happy about that.

How do you see your relationship with existing media outlets in town?

We just want to make them better and support their mission by developing another channel for citizen engagement. The buzz that Wikileaks has received has enabled something like this to spread quickly and for people to quickly grasp what it’s about. We think this is a channel that the city really needs right now.

————

BALTIMORE GOVERNMENT WATCH

What motivated you to start your site? What’s its purpose?

The purpose is to bring up to light various instances of government mismanagement, stupidity, nepotism and corruption in Baltimore City. We don’t seek to necessarily analyze or pass judgment on all stories published, sometimes the purpose is to simply shine a bright light so

people are aware of it.

Did somebody have a “that’s the last straw” moment and if so, what was it?

The last straw was how Agnes Welch got the council to put her son in her place, in the best traditions of dictators everywhere. The council hearings were a joke as Adam Meister at the Examiner so well covered.

Is this modeled on Wikileaks or some other site?

This is more akin to a traditional blog like Adam Meister’s column at Examiner and Baltimore Crime. We do not solicit leaks or publish them. We may publish a leaked public document if it is obtainable from the original agency.

How are you different from/similar to the Balti-leaks people?

We predate BaltiLeaks by a few weeks but have no connections to them other than occasional tweets to point out certain things.

What’s your approach, what techniques are you using aside from publishing publicly-available data?

Tying things together that would not be otherwise obvious. We also try to get public records to shine light on certain things. In some cases, we do a bit of analysis, but generally our goal is to simple use the information already out there to keep people better informed.

How many tips have you received so far?

We can’t really comment on that.

What kinds of data are you looking at and what else do you plan to publish?

Right now we are starting to take a hard look at the various commissions and boards of Baltimore City, how their members are appointed and how they are run. We specifically want to focus on how board members are not necessarily picked for their expertise but because of their connections. Another project in the works is to examine how different agencies respond to public record requests. We also want to eventually look at the use of contractors by the city to

avoid things like the ethics code.

All of these are in early planning stages.

Have you had an impact? How will you measure success?

Our impact would be measured in concrete changes that the city government puts forth including changes that take place at the ballot box. So far, we don’t think we have had a lot of impact, but we hope to change this over time. The ultimate goal is not to need this blog.



Aren’t you worried about getting sued?

There are a lot of organizations out there like the EFF and the ACLU who have won many important decisions for bloggers in the past, and there is a lot of freedom of speech case law out there. We are not afraid of law suits because nothing we do is illegal. We do not handle

private documents, and stay away from anything questionable. But ultimately we hope that those who don’t like what we are doing will find more acceptable ways to express their displeasure.

Can you describe your group in some way?

We can’t really go into details on that but there are multiple people involved, and none are of journalistic backgrounds. We are just city citizens, fed up with what is going on.

How can you guarantee anonymity to people who send you information?

We do not solicit information from people and do not guarantee anonymity. Instead, people are encourage to use public means of contact such as Twitter, and anonymize themselves via those services. However, we will not publish private information received from others

without permission as a common courtesy.

How can people trust you if they don’t know you?

Regarding trust – we ask people to judge us based on our actions. We publish public data, which anyone can verify. If we make a mistake, we invite people to let us know about it.

Why are you anonymous?

We are very concerned about possible negative retaliation from existing government officials and do not plan to go public until the political climate in the city changes that that will no longer be a fear. A good example is an article posted by the Investigative Voice about a woman who got a lien on her house because she complained about some fliers. We have heard much worse stories through the grapevine such as people’s employers being threatened and threats to report fake reports of abuse of children to social services. How true they are we don’t know, but we rather not take chances.

Additionally, the US has a long history of anonymous political speech

starting with the revolution times. We are not the first.

What can you do to reassure people that you do not have a political bias or that you’re not serving a commercial or political interest or personal vendetta?

Like we said, judge us on our actions. If anyone things we are leaning

one way, let us know.

Does anybody with your group have ties to Otis Rolley or others trying to unseat a political incumbent?

No one in our group has any ties to any political candidates or anyone running for office, nor has anyone given or plan to give campaign contributions to anyone on local, state or federal levels. We do not consider the current campaign fundraising system very good or fair. With this said, we do contact people for comments including political campaigns just like conventional journalists.

Do you see your role as helping journalists, pushing them . . . . or shaming them?

We want to help and sometimes push a little, not shame unless it is fairly called for. Our main goal is to dig information up others can follow up on.

Are you making an attempt to verify information or make connections and inferences? This moves you from just putting information out to analyzing it.

As much as possible we try to verify the information from public records. When inferences are made, we state those clearly as guesses, not facts. However, the main issue with analysis and following up on things is lack of time – all of us have jobs and families to feed, so our time is really limited to what we can do. This is somewhat similar to Wikileaks which focuses on publishing raw data, although we do not approve or condone publishing private information like they do.



How do you see your role in relation to the Sun and other local media?

We treat the Sun as a valuable resource with their stories, and especially the several reporters who use twitter (such as Justin Fenton). However, we do not seek a relationship with them different than anyone else. If they wish to write a story based on what we found, good luck to them, and to any other media group. We are simply trying to uncover more information and leads for both citizens and media to follow.