Carmen Median retired–her brilliance and innovative spirit surfaced at the top too late in the game. She is, however, like General Peter Schoomaker, USA (Ret), one of those bright lights that in our view should be brought back in to manage a global multinational information sharing and sense-making grid. She is not forgotten, and we hold her in the very highest esteem.
Below is the presentation she made to OSS '03, and a link to the article in Studies in Intelligence that remains, along with everything written by Jack Davis, seminal.
Carmen MedinaCarmen Medina What to Do When Traditional Models Fail
These two guys are worth over $50billion a year to the Internal Revenue Service (IRS), but the U.S. Government does not seem to care about intelligence-driven revenue-collection.
These guys ROCK and represent all that academics should be in the service of their country and theircommunity.
Dr. Simon J. Pak and Dr. John S. Zdanowicz, Penn State University and Florida International UniversityOSS '03: For their extraordinary demonstration, with a tangible value to the public of $50 billion a year in tax fraud savings, of new methods of academic investigation into public trade records, and the consequent discovery of specific instances of import-export money laundering and financial fraud, as well as weight variances associated with the smuggling of contraband and the mis-representation of cargo.
Below are their paper and slides as presented at OSS '03. These guys should have their own investigative cell fully-funded by the IRS and ultimately in ther service of all governments (a multinational global service).
Mr. Robert Young Pelton is perhaps the greatest journalist-adverturer on the planet. This is a man that gets kidnapped by accident, is recognized by the leader of the kidnappers, and is promptly released with apologies and an honor guard. His book World’s Most Dangerous Places and his TV series Come Back Alive are among the most extraordinary “ground truth” offerings available to the public and admired by the spies. In his every waking moment, in his every action, in his every report, he embodies the true spirit of Open Source Intelligence (OSINT).
This extraordinary person may well be the prototype for engaged citizen investigative journalism. Below is the summary of his presence at OSS '03, and links to his two most important websites. The photo above links to his Wikipedia page.
Pelton at OSS '03Come Back Alive Web Site including DangerpediaAmazon Page
Ralph Peters stands out in Phi Beta Iota's tag cloud because among the 2000 or so authors represented here, he has both multiple non-fictions books to his name that we have reviewed, and he has given provocative presentations on more than one occasion to the multinational public intelligence audience that we began nurturing in 1992. Below by Shane Harris is both a PDF for retension assurance, and at the logo, the original online article from Government Executive.
PLATINUM Lifetime Award Mr. Stephen E. Arnold
For his constant demonstration of the utility of Open Source Intelligence (OSINT) in the understanding of social networks, emerging technologies, and cultural realities. As a world-renowned authority on information and communications, with a deep understanding of the public policy value of open source information, he has made himself available around the world, and had much more influence than most realize. His publication of the book, “The Google Legacy,” is a mere milestone in one of the most distinguished information careers in the world.
Stephen E. Arnold has been the virtual Chief Technology Officer (CTO) for OSS and EIN all these years, as a pro bono contribution. He has also been the architect behind FirstGov and GovUSA, and is now supporting efforts by Medard Gabel to build the World Brain as EarthGame. Below is his contribution OSS '02.
As with Greg Treverton, Dr. Richard Betts is among a handful of “in-house” scholars that enjoy easy access to the “lifers” in the US secret intelligence community, and especially the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) and its Directorate of Intelligence.
PLATINUM Lifetime Award, Mr. Mats Bjore, Sweden
There is no other person who has created a national open source intelligence capability, with recognition from the Royal War Academy for doing so; then gone on to rationalize McKinsey knowledge management in the Nordic region, then created the foremost international commercial intelligence practice in InfoSphere AB, and concluded with the creation of Silobreaker, a combination of sources and tools that takes the information industry to a new level. Mats Bjore is the ultimate Long Range Reconnaissance Philosopher-Warrior.
Then Major Bjore came to the 1992 conference, absorbed all he could, and returned to Sweden to create the first military open source unit of consequence. He has been the originator and primary international practitioner of Commercial Intelligence, which is an order of magnitude more holistic, substantive, and profitable than Competitive Intelligence or worse, Business Intelligence (internal data mining). While OSS.Net, Inc. retains all rights to the sales phrase “Information costs money, Intelligence makes money,” Mats Bjore and InfoSphere have epitomized the concept in their being. He is also a principal in the creation of SILOBREAKER, follow the Frog to experience that free online analytic toolkit. Below is his contribution to OSS '02.
