The National Archives and Records Administration (NARA) is requesting information from the private sector on how it might improve the way social media data is collected and archived from previous presidential administrations, according to a request for information (RFI) posted on the SAM.gov website.
In coordination with the director of Presidential Libraries, NARA administers a network of libraries that host a wealth of written and published materials from previous presidential administrations for public consumption. Past administrations have used a third-party tool to collect and archive social media data from various platforms, such as Facebook, Flickr, Instagram, Twitter, and YouTube. That information is then transferred into the National Archives for permanent retention.
However, because NARA provides public access to social media posts through their respective platforms, the complete record of data – which could include edited or deleted content – is not displayed. Because of that, NARA has decided to move away from this data collection method.
NARA is looking for companies capable and interested in utilizing agile development processes to design, develop, and implement an interactive, user-friendly Presidential Library website feature to present archived social media data that meets NARA and Federal standards.
The potential contractor would perform audience research to determine usability and best practices, design a scalable look and feel, provide web development, migrate exported data, configure a search engine, review and test the component, assist in the component’s launch, and provide post-launch support.
Interested companies must respond to the RFI by July 26.
