State Department’s Facebook spending highlights lack of transparency in contracting data

Only the Defense Department, which has awarded nine contracts totaling $1,231,606, has spent more...

State Department spending of $630,000 to generate more Facebook likes drew national criticism when it was revealed last year.

Recently released government contract solicitation data reveals more about the department's social media strategy, but still falls short of painting a complete picture of its spending.

Instead, the solicitations highlight the lack of transparency in the department's contracting data.

The solicitations, which were originally posted on the federal contracting database FedBizOpps.gov, show the department's efforts to use social media to promote its image overseas and track international conversations on Facebook, Twitter and other platforms.

Most of the solicitations are for Facebook advertisements, promotional materials and marketing for U.S. embassy pages. But because of major gaps in the available data, there's not much more information.

The solicitations were obtained by the Sunlight Foundation through a Freedom of Information Act request as part of a database of 13 years of federal contract information.

For instance, a search of the the data provided to Sunlight doesn't show the awards associated with the solicitations.

Unless the award for a particular solicitation can be tracked down elsewhere, information on the price tag and the contractor given the job aren't readily available.

Contract information on USASpending.gov, another federal spending database, illustrates why the lack of information can be problematic.

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State Department's Facebook spending highlights lack of transparency in contracting data