Document dump
Encyclopedia
A document dump is the act of responding to an adversary's request for information
by presenting the adversary with a large quantity of data that is transferred in a manner that indicates unfriendliness, hostility, or a legal conflict between the transmitter and the receiver of the information. The shipment of dumped documents is unsorted, or contains a large quantity of information that is extraneous to the issue under inquiry, or is presented in an untimely manner, or some combination of these three characteristics. The phrase is often used by lawyer
s, but is in increasing use in the blogosphere
. It is often seen as part of the characteristic behavior of an entity that is engaging in an ongoing pattern of activities intended to cover up
unethical or criminal conduct.
in 2007, relevant committees of both houses of the United States Congress
, controlled by the Democratic party
, requested, and then subpoenaed, backstory information from the United States Department of Justice
on how the process that resulted in these dismissals had taken place. The Justice Department was reluctant to respond in a friendly manner to these requests, which they regarded as hostile; the Department responded with significant quantities of unsorted and extraneous information. Many U.S. liberals
saw this response as a series of document dumps and communicated amongst themselves accordingly:
The practice has seen use by both sides of the political spectrum. Conservatives accused members of the Clinton Administration of document dumps during the investigation of the 1996 United States campaign finance controversy
. One such dump included, among other things, 1,000 sheets of blank paper, 35 copies of the résumé
of Charlie Trie, and a copy of the menu
from his restaurant
in Little Rock, Arkansas
.
Document dumps are not restricted to the field of politics. Large organizations of all types have become adept at overwhelming news organizations and other entities requesting information under state and federal freedom of information and open records laws
. In a 2011 example, the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill
responded to an appeals court order to release certain records related to 11 specific athletes with a document dump of thousands of pages of phone records and parking tickets. The court's order was related to a media request under North Carolina open records law related to an ongoing NCAA investigation of the UNC football program
.
An underlying principle of information theory
is that information must be comprehensible in order to be useful. One universal characteristic of a document dump is that its shippers intend to retard or slow down the process through which their adversaries can make this information comprehensible. In an effort to minimize negative coverage by the news media
, document dumps will often take place at times when reporters are not on duty, such as late on a Friday when media members have left for the weekend.
The phrase document dump is rarely used in public by the shipper or its workers. Public use of the phrase tends to be confined to the recipients of the information.
Information
Information in its most restricted technical sense is a message or collection of messages that consists of an ordered sequence of symbols, or it is the meaning that can be interpreted from such a message or collection of messages. Information can be recorded or transmitted. It can be recorded as...
by presenting the adversary with a large quantity of data that is transferred in a manner that indicates unfriendliness, hostility, or a legal conflict between the transmitter and the receiver of the information. The shipment of dumped documents is unsorted, or contains a large quantity of information that is extraneous to the issue under inquiry, or is presented in an untimely manner, or some combination of these three characteristics. The phrase is often used by lawyer
Lawyer
A lawyer, according to Black's Law Dictionary, is "a person learned in the law; as an attorney, counsel or solicitor; a person who is practicing law." Law is the system of rules of conduct established by the sovereign government of a society to correct wrongs, maintain the stability of political...
s, but is in increasing use in the blogosphere
Blogosphere
The blogosphere is made up of all blogs and their interconnections. The term implies that blogs exist together as a connected community or as a social network in which everyday authors can publish their opinions...
. It is often seen as part of the characteristic behavior of an entity that is engaging in an ongoing pattern of activities intended to cover up
Cover Up
Cover Up is an American action/adventure television series that aired for one season on CBS from September 22, 1984 to April 6, 1985. Created by Glen A. Larson, the series stars Jennifer O'Neill, Jon-Erik Hexum, Antony Hamilton, and Richard Anderson....
unethical or criminal conduct.
Examples
As one facet of the dismissal of U.S. attorneys controversyDismissal of U.S. attorneys controversy
The dismissal of U.S. Attorneys controversy was initiated by the unprecedented midterm dismissal of seven United States Attorneys on December 7, 2006 by the George W. Bush administration's Department of Justice. Congressional investigations focused on whether the Department of Justice and the White...
in 2007, relevant committees of both houses of the United States Congress
United States Congress
The United States Congress is the bicameral legislature of the federal government of the United States, consisting of the Senate and the House of Representatives. The Congress meets in the United States Capitol in Washington, D.C....
, controlled by the Democratic party
Democratic Party (United States)
The Democratic Party is one of two major contemporary political parties in the United States, along with the Republican Party. The party's socially liberal and progressive platform is largely considered center-left in the U.S. political spectrum. The party has the lengthiest record of continuous...
, requested, and then subpoenaed, backstory information from the United States Department of Justice
United States Department of Justice
The United States Department of Justice , is the United States federal executive department responsible for the enforcement of the law and administration of justice, equivalent to the justice or interior ministries of other countries.The Department is led by the Attorney General, who is nominated...
on how the process that resulted in these dismissals had taken place. The Justice Department was reluctant to respond in a friendly manner to these requests, which they regarded as hostile; the Department responded with significant quantities of unsorted and extraneous information. Many U.S. liberals
Liberalism
Liberalism is the belief in the importance of liberty and equal rights. Liberals espouse a wide array of views depending on their understanding of these principles, but generally, liberals support ideas such as constitutionalism, liberal democracy, free and fair elections, human rights,...
saw this response as a series of document dumps and communicated amongst themselves accordingly:
A big new bundle of documents just got dumped by the Department of Justice. Here's a link to the documents in PDF form at the House Judiciary Committee website. As per our routine in recent document dumps, if you'd like to help us cull through the mails and reports, use this thread to share your findings with us and other TPMm Readers. Identify the items you find by document dump set number and page number. (Josh MarshallJosh MarshallJoshua Micah Marshall is an American Polk Award-winning journalist who founded Talking Points Memo, which The New York Times Magazine called "one of the most popular and most respected sites" in the blogosphere...
, April 27, 2007).
The practice has seen use by both sides of the political spectrum. Conservatives accused members of the Clinton Administration of document dumps during the investigation of the 1996 United States campaign finance controversy
1996 United States campaign finance controversy
The 1996 United States campaign finance controversy, also known as Chinagate, was an alleged effort by the People's Republic of China to influence domestic American politics during the 1996 federal elections....
. One such dump included, among other things, 1,000 sheets of blank paper, 35 copies of the résumé
Résumé
A résumé is a document used by individuals to present their background and skillsets. Résumés can be used for a variety of reasons but most often to secure new employment. A typical résumé contains a summary of relevant job experience and education...
of Charlie Trie, and a copy of the menu
Menu
In a restaurant, a menu is a presentation of food and beverage offerings. A menu may be a la carte – which guests use to choose from a list of options – or table d'hôte, in which case a pre-established sequence of courses is served....
from his restaurant
Restaurant
A restaurant is an establishment which prepares and serves food and drink to customers in return for money. Meals are generally served and eaten on premises, but many restaurants also offer take-out and food delivery services...
in Little Rock, Arkansas
Little Rock, Arkansas
Little Rock is the capital and the largest city of the U.S. state of Arkansas. The Metropolitan Statistical Area had a population of 699,757 people in the 2010 census...
.
Document dumps are not restricted to the field of politics. Large organizations of all types have become adept at overwhelming news organizations and other entities requesting information under state and federal freedom of information and open records laws
Freedom of information in the United States
Freedom of information in the United States refers to the independent bodies of Freedom of information legislation at the federal level and in the fifty states.-Federal level:...
. In a 2011 example, the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill
University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill
The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill is a public research university located in Chapel Hill, North Carolina, United States...
responded to an appeals court order to release certain records related to 11 specific athletes with a document dump of thousands of pages of phone records and parking tickets. The court's order was related to a media request under North Carolina open records law related to an ongoing NCAA investigation of the UNC football program
2010 North Carolina Tar Heels football team
The 2010 North Carolina Tar Heels football team represented the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill in the 2010 college football season. The team was led by fourth year coach Butch Davis and played their home games at Kenan Memorial Stadium. They are members of the Atlantic Coast Conference...
.
An underlying principle of information theory
Information theory
Information theory is a branch of applied mathematics and electrical engineering involving the quantification of information. Information theory was developed by Claude E. Shannon to find fundamental limits on signal processing operations such as compressing data and on reliably storing and...
is that information must be comprehensible in order to be useful. One universal characteristic of a document dump is that its shippers intend to retard or slow down the process through which their adversaries can make this information comprehensible. In an effort to minimize negative coverage by the news media
News media
The news media are those elements of the mass media that focus on delivering news to the general public or a target public.These include print media , broadcast news , and more recently the Internet .-Etymology:A medium is a carrier of something...
, document dumps will often take place at times when reporters are not on duty, such as late on a Friday when media members have left for the weekend.
The phrase document dump is rarely used in public by the shipper or its workers. Public use of the phrase tends to be confined to the recipients of the information.