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Jim Harper
Director of Information Policy Studies
As director of information policy studies, Jim Harper focuses on the difficult problems of adapting law and policy to the unique problems of the information age. Harper is a member of the Department of Homeland Security's Data Privacy and Integrity Advisory Committee. His work has been cited by USA Today, the Associated Press, and Reuters. He has appeared on Fox News Channel, CBS, and MSNBC, and other media. His scholarly articles have appeared in the Administrative Law Review, the Minnesota Law Review, and the Hastings Constitutional Law Quarterly. Recently, Harper wrote the book Identity Crisis: How Identification Is Overused and Misunderstood. Harper is the editor of Privacilla.org, a Web-based think tank devoted exclusively to privacy, and he maintains online federal spending resource WashingtonWatch.com. He holds a J.D. from UC Hastings College of Law.
Media Contact: 202-789-5200
To Book a Speaking Engagement: 202-789-5226
E-Mail: jharper@cato.org
Books and Book Chapters
Terrorizing Ourselves: Why U.S. Counterterrorism Policy Is Failing and How to Fix It, co-editor (2010).
"National ID Systems," Chapter 29 of the Cato Handbook for Policymakers, 7th edition.
"Regulation of Electronic Speech and Commerce," Chapter 30 of the Cato Handbook for Policymakers, 7th edition.
"Telecommunications, Broadband, and Media Policy," Chapter 37 of the Cato Handbook for Policymakers, 7th edition.
"Domestic Security," Chapter 47 of the Cato Handbook for Policymakers, 7th edition.
Cato Studies
"Electronic Employment Eligibility Verification: Franz Kafka's Solution to Illegal Immigration," Policy Analysis no. 612, March 6, 2008.
"Effective Counterterrorism and the Limited Role of Predictive Data Mining," by Jeff Jonas and Jim Harper, Policy Analysis no. 584, December 11, 2006.
"Understanding Privacy -- and the Real Threats to It," Policy Analysis no. 520, August 4, 2004.
Articles and Newsletters
"Federal Spending Transparency: Unlocking the Power of Abstraction," OMB Watch, May 20, 2010.
"The Promise That Keeps on Breaking," TechKnowledge, April 13, 2009.
"Government-Run Cyber Security? No, Thanks," TechKnowledge, March 13, 2009.
"U.S. Patent and Trademark Office: FAIL," TechKnowledge, February 9, 2009.
""Clean Tech": Does Going Green Mean Going Red? ," TechKnowledge, December 10, 2008.
Opinion and Commentary
"Should Consumers Fear the Comcast Deal?," The New York Times, December 9, 2009
"Real ID Laws Are a National Catastrophe," Delaware County Times, August 24, 2008
"Can E-Verify Help Stem Tide of Illegal Immigration?," Daily Herald, March 30, 2008
"Sanford Should Stand Up to Fed Bullying Over REAL IDs," Charleston Post-Courier, March 27, 2008
"Rejecting National ID," American Spectator, February 7, 2008
Cato @ Liberty Blog Posts
"Compare and Contrast," July 29, 2010
"Controversy? Or Confidence Game?," July 26, 2010
"The Information Economy Stops Evolving Today," July 20, 2010
"Stop 'n' Frisk Databases," July 16, 2010
"Sunlight Before Signing . . . Clouded," July 16, 2010
Events
"Strategic Counterterrorism: The Signals We Send," July 29, 2010 [Capitol Hill Briefing]
"Terrorizing Ourselves: Why U.S. Counterterrorism Policy Is Failing and How to Fix It," May 24, 2010 [Book Forum]
"Should Immigration Reform Include a National ID?," April 23, 2010 [Capitol Hill Briefing]
"The Watchers: The Rise of America's Surveillance State," March 10, 2010 [Book Forum]
"The Obama Administration's Counterterrorism Policy at One Year," January 13, 2010 [Policy Forum]
Speeches and Testimony
"Consumer Online Privacy," July 27, 2010.
"The Motor Vehicle Safety Act of 2010," May 6, 2010.
"Performance of the DC One Card Program," October 9, 2009.
"Assessing Cybersecurity Activities at NIST and DHS," June 25, 2009.
"The Federal REAL ID Act of 2005," October 25, 2007.
Multimedia
Jim Harper discusses facebook privacy on KSND's NBC 7/39 News in the Morning July 28, 2010 [Flash Video, 01:20]
Jim Harper discusses net-neutrality on FOX's America Live May 11, 2010 [Flash Video, 03:41]
"A Small Step Forward for Online Privacy" featuring Jim Harper, April 22, 2010 [Flash Audio, 07:19]
"Neutralizing Net Regulation" featuring Jim Harper, April 8, 2010 [Flash Audio, 05:35]
Jim Harper discusses the FCC ruling on WOR's The Jon Gambling Show April 7, 2010 [Flash Audio, 04:30]
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