What Is This?

Today's Web Picks (formerly Article Alert) is a free aggregation and digest service that links readers to interesting and informative periodical literature (magazine and other journal articles) on a variety of topics including (1) American Life, (2) Economy, (3) Global Challenges, (4) International Relations, and (5) Climate Change. We also offer (6) Top Ten Lists and Other Cool Stuff. We hyperlink to the original texts and supply a short “teaser.” There’s a lot of great reading on the web and not enough time to find it all. We can help!

How can I receive Today's Web Picks ?

Three ways:

1. Today's Web Picks lives at http://www.america.gov/publications/article-alert.html. You can find Today's Web Picks on America.gov using the Publications drop-down menu towards the top right corner of your screen. Portions of Today's Web Picks also may appear on other America.gov Webpages. Published in seven languages, America.gov informs international audiences about American society and the values that underlie U.S. policies.

2. By RSS feed. Each of the five Today's Web Picks topics has its own RSS feed, viz:

   • American Life
   • International Relations
   • Economy
   • Global Challenges
   • Climate Change
   • Top Ten/Cool Stuff

   So go ahead and subscribe to our feeds via your RSS-enabled browser or RSS-reader page (Netvibes; MyYahoo!; iGoogle; many others out there)

3. On your mobile device (or computer) via the Today's Web Picks Twitter feed. Follow us at twitter.com/americagovalert.

Who are you?

We are a group of editors and reference specialists employed by the U.S. Department of State’s Bureau of International Information Programs, and, yes, we really do get paid for this! (We also do a lot of other work.) We create books, a monthly eJournal USA, and the entire text- and multimedia-rich America.gov Web site. Our print team has its own Twitter feed (americagovprint) and you can become a fan of eJournal USA on Facebook. Our colleagues upstairs make videos and work in all kinds of multimedia, but really the writers and librarians are the cutting edge here. :)

How do you decide which articles are digested for Today's Web Picks?

We read what interests us, and link to what we think will interest you. We only use articles available on the Web in full-text format, and we apply common-sense. If you want a pithy standard, we’re happy with “Today's Web Picks selects materials that reflect a wide range of responsible opinion.” If you want to know more about “responsible opinion,” we refer you back to “common sense.” We enjoy a good verbal or written scrap, and love nothing more than a vigorous dispute in the world of ideas. That said, we are not violent people, we do not traffic in hate speech, and we will not link to articles that violate these basic, nonnegotiable standards.

How often is Today's Web Picks updated?

Continuously. This means whenever (1) we receive an article summary, we shorten it into a “pick” and build in the hyperlink; (2) we edit the pick; and (3) we publish it to the appropriate RSS feed. We try to add new material every working day.

So where’s the standard disclaimer?

You knew it was coming! By including an essay or other material in Today's Web Picks, we (the Bureau of International Information Programs; the U.S. Department of State) imply no endorsement of any view expressed in any article we link to. We offer Today's Web Picks for informational purposes only.