About LittleSis

LittleSis is a free database detailing the connections between powerful people and organizations. We bring transparency to influential social networks by tracking the key relationships of politicians, business leaders, lobbyists, financiers, and their affiliated institutions. We help answer questions such as:

  • Who do the wealthiest Americans donate their money to?
  • Where did White House officials work before they were appointed?
  • Which lobbyists are married to politicians, and who do they lobby for?

All of this information is public, but scattered. We bring it together in one place. Our data derives from government filings, news articles, and other reputable sources. Some data sets are updated automatically; the rest is filled in by our user community.

LittleSis lets you see past the news headlines and tired debates.

Who are the movers and shakers behind the bailouts, government contracts, and new policies? We’re working to stock LittleSis with information about bigwigs who make the news, and their connections to those who don’t. For updates and analysis visit our blog, Eyes on the Ties

LittleSis is meant to support the work of journalists, watchdogs, and grassroots activists.

We’re bringing together a community of researchers who believe in transparency and accountability where it matters most. We’re looking for researchers, programmers, artists and organizers to lend their skills…Get Involved

LittleSis is built and maintained by a nonprofit think-and-do tank.

LittleSis is a project of Public Accountability Initiative, a 501(c)3 organization focused on corporate and government accountability. Our mission is to facilitate and produce investigative research that promotes transparent and accountable governance. PAI was founded in early 2008 by a group of activists, public interest lawyers, and academics associated with leading universities and major social change organizations.

Dataset

LittleSis features interlinked profiles of powerful individuals and organizations in the public and private sectors. Profiles detail a wealth of information vital to any investigation of the ways power and money guide the formulation of public policy, from board memberships to campaign contributions, old school ties to government contracts.

We provide a public api and bulk data. The software powering LittleSis is open source.

Data Summary

11,058,007 Citations
1,823,760 Relationships
299,685 People
133,477 Organizations
85,355 Business People
38,743 Businesses
22,251 Political Fundraising Committees
14,193 Academics
12,682 Lobbyists
12,141 Lawyers
12,123 Public Officials
11,211 Political Candidates
9,283 Private Companies
6,403 Elected Representatives
6,029 Other Not-for-Profits
5,693 Government Bodies
5,530 Media Personalities
4,466 Schools
3,578 Philanthropies
3,541 Public Companies
2,205 Individual Campaign Committees
2,157 Membership Organizations
1,889 Other Campaign Committees
1,829 Lobbying Firms
1,290 Law Firms
1,179 Industry/Trade Associations
896 Consulting Firms
890 PACs
832 Policy/Think Tanks
765 Government-Sponsored Enterprises
731 Public Intellectuals
602 Media Organizations
536 Government Advisory Bodies
493 Cultural/Arts
448 Political Parties
384 Academic Research Institutes
330 Professional Associations
324 Labor Unions
252 Social Clubs
233 Public Relations Firms
111 Elite Consensus Groups