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

11,100,185 Citations
1,829,715 Relationships
300,204 People
133,839 Organizations
85,505 Business People
38,800 Businesses
22,410 Political Fundraising Committees
14,228 Academics
12,683 Lobbyists
12,187 Public Officials
12,183 Lawyers
11,286 Political Candidates
9,288 Private Companies
6,412 Elected Representatives
6,040 Other Not-for-Profits
5,699 Government Bodies
5,532 Media Personalities
4,471 Schools
3,579 Philanthropies
3,542 Public Companies
2,205 Individual Campaign Committees
2,166 Membership Organizations
1,890 Other Campaign Committees
1,830 Lobbying Firms
1,293 Law Firms
1,189 Industry/Trade Associations
898 Consulting Firms
893 PACs
833 Policy/Think Tanks
767 Government-Sponsored Enterprises
734 Public Intellectuals
606 Media Organizations
542 Government Advisory Bodies
494 Cultural/Arts
448 Political Parties
387 Academic Research Institutes
332 Professional Associations
326 Labor Unions
252 Social Clubs
233 Public Relations Firms
111 Elite Consensus Groups