Use IFTTT to Stay on Top of Government News
In today’s political climate, chances are high that you are looking for less government news. However, if you’re looking for information straight from the source, IFTTT (If This, Then This) has made it easier to get the latest news with its new data access project.
If you are not familiar with IFTTT, the service allows you to create recipes, thanks to which, if one happens, the other will happen. For example, you can set up a recipe so that if you tweet, the post will also be published on Facebook. The service works with most social networks, email and a number of smart home devices.
At its core, the Data Access Project works just like any other IFTTT recipe, except instead of creating a recipe to turn on porch lights, recipes start with data from places like the FCC, Department of Labor, Library of Congress, and American Civil. Union of Freedoms.
So, you can create recipes that do something like:
- Post to Slack when the FCC publishes a new notice
- Receive an email when the National Science Foundation announces a new scientific discovery
- Receive a text message when the Department of State issues a travel alert
- Get alerts when EPA news about your city comes out
There are also accounts for some of the major public transit groups such as Amtrak, NJ Transit, MTA, and Caltrain.
Registration is required to use the service, which is free, and you connect it to your email (if you need email notifications) or phone if you want to receive these text messages).
Here are some of the existing agencies and services that you can currently use with IFTTT:
Department of Labor
Bureau of Economic Analysis
United States Securities and Exchange Commission
International Monetary Fund
Federal Communications Commission (FCC)
Environmental Protection Agency (EPA)
Library of Congress
National Science Foundation
Energy Information Association
American Psychological Association
Pew Research Center
Ministry of Defence
World health organization
Centers for Disease Control
Texas Legislature
San Francisco MTA
Chicago Transit Authority
You can check the full list of participating institutions and organizations, and create your own alerts here .