Articles and Research
A selection of work by Pam Dixon. Some of these materials are posted on this site, but materials created for the World Privacy Forum and for some other publications are posted only on those sites. Links are provided when available.
Genetic privacy: Comments to HHS on Privacy and Personalized Health Care
- February 5, 2007. Written comments to HHS focusing on genetic privacy issues. Personalized medicine involves using genetic data for research, and for other purposes. Particular attention must be paid to the ethical, legal, and social implications of any records and practices that use personalized medical approaches. These comments discuss Fair Information Principles, formal ELSI (ethical, legal, and social implications) procedures, and Privacy Impact Assessments. (PDF, 10 pages, World Privacy Forum)
Medical Identity Theft: The Information Crime that Can Hurt You.
- May 3, 2006. This substantial research report was published by the World Privacy Forum. It is the first known report focused on medical identity theft as an information crime with unique characteristics distinct from financial identity theft. (The report (56 pages) is available at the World Privacy Forum. The Medical Identity Theft page at the World Privacy Forum links to the executive summary, the full report, consumer tips, and other materials.)
Written Testimony to NCVHS
- August 16, 2005. This document was presented as testimony before the National Committee on Vital and Health Statistics. HTML or PDF (20 pages, links to World Privacy Forum).
Comments to the FTC on Telemarketing
- July 29, 2005. Written comments to the FTC regarding protecting state laws on telemarketing. PDF (15 pages, links to World Privacy Forum).
Call Don't Click Update: Still be Smart About Ordering Federally Mandated Free Credit Reports
- July 14, 2005. This report was written as a follow up to the first Call Don't Click report. It was approximately 3 and a half months in its research, and it focused on imposter sites. PDF (33 pages, links to World Privacy Forum).
Consumer Tips For Retrieving Federally Mandated Free Credit Reports
- February 25, 2005. Updated: May 26, 2005. This tip sheet was created in conjunction with the Call Don't Click study.
Call Don't Click: Why It's Smarter to Order Federally Mandated Free Credit Reports Over the Phone, not on the Internet.
- February 24, 2005. This study was conducted for the World Privacy Forum on the topic of AnnualCreditReport.com. PDF (42 pages).
Comments to HHS on Electronic Health Records and NHIN
- February 15, 2005. Co-written with Lee Tien of the EFF. PDF (18 pages).
How to Say No To Cookies that Track You
- September 1, 2004. Updated April 26, 2005. About types of cookies on the Internet.
Job Fraud Study Pt. I: A Year in the Life of a Job Scam
Interactive Timeline: The Evolution of a Job Scam
- July 8, 2004. This timeline tracks a job scam over the course of a year and documents it. HTML
2003 Job Search Privacy Study.... Job Searching in the Networked Environment: Consumer Privacy Benchmarks.
- Nov. 11, 2003. This report was the result of a year-long investigation into the job search industry. PDF only (83 pages.)
Resume Database Nightmare
- February, 2003. The first substantiation of resume theft and sales of consumer resumes at online job search sites. This was an interim report prior to the release of the full 2003 Job Search Privacy Study.
Click You're Hired or Tracked..... A Report on the Privacy Practices of Monster.com
- September, 2001. published by the Privacy Foundation. This report was the first to ever look at the privacy practices of an online job search site. At the time, Monster.com was the dominant site in the industry and was in a period of expansion. This report was in excess of a year in its research.
Fare Game: Airlines, travel agents, duke it out over the Web
- January 2000. Feature about technology and the airline industry (Sunday Travel, Denver Post, Minneapolis Star Tribune, San Diego Union Tribune, San Jose Mercury News.)
Taking Note --Bird Song and Animal Calls prove to be More Than the Sounds of Music
Birds Call to Classical Composers (Sidebar to the article)
- August 2000. Feature about how animals perceive and create music. ( Front page Science, pubbed San Diego Union Tribune).
Of Mice and Men
- February 1999. Feature on American composer Carlisle Floyd and his opera based on the Steinbeck tale. (Front page Arts, pubbed San Diego Union Tribune.)
Breakthrough artist hitches his rising star to 3D Web Art
- September 2000. New Media column, John Klima .
A High-tech community abuzz about 3-D work|
- August 2000. New Media column, from New Orleans SIGGRAPH.
Animators find a home on the 'toon friendly
Web
- July 2000. New Media column. "Joe Cartoon."
Photographer Stephen Johnson breaking new Digital Ground
- June 2000. New Media column.
Web Spreading the Spoken Word
- May 2000. New Media column.
Digital Downloading of Books is Shaking up the Status Quo
- April 2000. New Media column.
Cyber Artists' Toy War not Child's Play
- May 2000. New Media column. About eToys vs. etoy, an early domain tussle.
It's a marvel: SpiderMan creator Stan Lee weaves a new Web
- October 1999. I met Stan at Harry's Bar in Los Angeles for this interview. He showed up wearing a pair of dark aviator sunglasses, which he never took off even in the deep recesses of the bar. Stan is a brilliant guy, and entertaining. (New Media column, SDUT.)
Digital artists owe much to forward-thinking pioneers
- December 1999. New Media column.
Hollywood Webbies have edge over studios in staking out Internet territory
- November 1999, New Media column.
Computer conference is a window on a world of wonder
- September 1999. Report from Siggraph LA.
Digital Art for Kids
- August 1999. Feature.
Urban Simulation Software Puts You Virtually in L.A.
- July 1999. Feature.
Interactive television puts channel surfers on the Web
- June 1999. Feature.
Art world moves ahead with online look back
- May 1999. New media column. American Century Exhibit at Whitney Museum.
Art for the Web -- it's a visual, visceral experience
- April 1999. Feature. "Net.art."
Computers dance into a new realm
- February 1999. Feature about motion capture and Bill T. Jones' work in Ghostdance.
Museums join forces to protect cyber rights to art
- January 1999. New Media column.
Grammy Awards Online
- February 2001. New Media column.
Arts groups are setting their sites on the Web
- August 1998. Feature on arts groups' first online efforts in San Diego.
Volunteers assist some organizations in Posting Net Gains
- August 1998. Sidebar about digital volunteers helping arts groups set up Web sites.
Spontaneous Composition (Geri Allen)
- March 1999. Feature article on the accomplished jazz pianist Geri Allen.
Hough and Isserlis pair for intense performance
- April 1999.Review of Cellis Isserlis at LaJolla Chamber Music Society.
Music travels profound universe
- February 1999. Review.
Conductor takes the road less traveled
- November 1998. Feature on Catherine Comet.
Edgar Meyer
- January 1999. Review of bassist Edgar Meyer at LaJolla.
California Arts Council
In December of 1998, Dixon was commissioned to write a series of esoteric articles on technology and the arts for the California Arts Council as part of the Governor's Conference on the Arts. The articles were intended for museum and fine arts specialists, but they definitely cross over into the area of new media.
Museums and Technology: A Picture of Metamorphosis
- December, 1998. Governor's Conference on the Arts.
Going Digital: New Media Preservation in a Transition Era
- December, 1998. Governor's Conference on the Arts.
The Transition from Physical to Virtual: Digitizing Museum Collections
- December, 1998. Governor's Conference on the Arts.
Museums and the Wild Child that is changing Everything: The Web
- December, 1998. Governor's Conference on the Arts.
Material published prior to 1998 is not archived here. This includes, for example, material from The Orange County Register and various freelance magazine work such as pieces for Sky Magazine, Emmy Magazine, LA Times Magazine, etc.