Book Reviews : The Dossier Society Kenneth C. Laudon Publisher: Columbia University Press,562 W. 113th St.,New York,NY 10025 Year of Publication: 1986 Length: 442 pages Price: $45.00 Intended Audience: Public officials and social scientists Usefulness: High Clarity: Very Good Difficulty: Low (researchers),high (public officials

Abstract

The Dossier Society, both an important public-policy statement and a significant analytical work, addresses a big question: How can national information systems, operating in the 1980s with the most advanced information technology, be held politically and socially accountable by democratic government? Under scrutiny are the FBI's National Crime Information Center and Computerized Criminal History Program and the evolution of the 65-year relationship of these information systems at the federal level with related criminal history systems at the state and local government levels. Here is a rich, multidimensional synthesis of the complex social, governmental, and organizational issues embedded in this national information system.