Wired’s un-paywalling of stories built on public data is a reminder of its role in the information ecosystem

Wired’s un-paywalling of stories built on public data is a reminder of its role in the information ecosystem

The federal government does a lot of things. It lifts millions of seniors out of poverty! It forecasts avalanches! It invades foreign countries based on dubious intelligence! It determines what time it is! And when it’s got a spare moment, it protects the Constitution — or at least one copy of it. If you set aside the military and the big retirement and health care programs — the federal government is, after all, an insurance company with an arm…