National & World Headlines

  • After two years of planning, the intelligence community is ready to start deploying the set of common IT services that make up the Intelligence Community Information Technology Enterprise (ICITE).

    April 16, 2014
  • Director of National Intelligence James Clapper says it's time to start deploying the project known as ICITE, a common IT environment for the entire intelligence community. More details from Federal News Radio's Jared Serbu.

    April 15, 2014
  • On Monday at 6:45 a.m. local time in Abuja, Nigeria, a large explosion rocked a crowded bus station in the Abuja suburb of Nyanya. Nigerian authorities say at least 71 people died in the blast and more than 150 were seriously injured. No group immediately claimed responsibility for the explosion, but authorities believe terror group Boko-Haram placed a large vehicle-borne explosive device in the area.

    April 15, 2014
  • Defense Department contracting officials are under orders now to double check prices on the General Services Administration's Federal Supply Schedule. DoD says the GSA Schedule doesn't always have the best price possible. Guy Timberlake, chief visionary and chief executive officer at the American Small Business Coalition, writes about it in this week's Gov-Con newsletter. He tells In Depth with Francis Rose "one size fits all" may not apply to your agency's contracting policy.

    April 14, 2014
  • The United States has blocked Iran's controversial pick for envoy to the United Nations, just as the two countries have been seeking a thaw in relations. This could have implications on U.S./Iran relations down the road. The White House says it has informed Iran it will not grant a visa to Hamid Aboutalebi, a member of the group responsible for the 1979 takeover of the U.S. Embassy in Tehran.

    April 14, 2014
  • Julie Perkins hosts a roundtable discussion of the hottest topics in the federal government. April 11, 2014

    April 11, 2014
  • The Navy and Marine Corps provided hands-on demonstrations of some of the innovative machines they use to help them do their jobs.

    April 11, 2014
  • "Efficiency and Effectiveness" — we hear that phrase all the time in government. At the Defense Department, it's taking on a new meaning. DoD can no longer spend more of its time worrying about the effectiveness of its acquisition programs at the expense of efficiency. Federal News Radio Executive Editor Jason Miller explained to Federal Drive hosts Tom Temin and Emily Kopp how DoD is addressing its long muted focus on efficient buying. Read Federal News Radio's related article.

    April 11, 2014
  • In the years that followed the 9/11 terrorist attacks, federal agencies made it a priority to create an integrated intelligence community. But one of the IC's top leaders says it's time to move to a new model, from "Integrated Intelligence" to "Immersive Intelligence." Letitia Long, director of the National Geospatial Intelligence Agency, previewed some of the agency's priorities in a conversation with Federal News Radio DoD Reporter Jared Serbu. Long will offer more details about NGA's plans at the annual GEOINT conference in Tampa next week.

    April 11, 2014
  • A group of functional domain experts are reaching out to the military services and agencies to look at service contracting spending across 12 areas. The Defense Department's goal is to use strategic sourcing to improve how it buys in these categories. The Army created a governance board to bring together all stakeholders during specific points of the acquisition process to find opportunities to collaborate.

    April 11, 2014
  • An ex-Marine was convicted of first-degree murder Tuesday. He is already serving a life sentence for previous crimes and could face execution.

    April 11, 2014
  • Sixteen black female members of Congress are pushing Defense Secretary Chuck Hagel to change Army regulations that ban hairstyles frequently worn by minority women in the military. The Associated Press reports the members of the Congressional Black Caucus signed a letter Thursday to Hagel, stating that the changes are "discriminatory rules targeting soldiers who are women of color." They say that references in the rules calling hairstyles worn mostly by black women "unkempt" and "matted" are offensive and show a lack of "cultural sensitivity."

    April 11, 2014
  • The Naval Air Systems Command's acquisition practices are laden with so much unnecessary costs that its commander worries about its ability to meet its mission to the fleet a few years from now. NAVAIR's commander said it's time to rethink the way it engages the acquisition system and with industry.

    April 10, 2014
  • Absent significant investment in developing the leadership abilities of supervisors, the federal government is going to have morale and performance issues for years to come, says Jeff Neal, former CHCO at Homeland Security.

    April 10, 2014