New York, NY, January 10, 2004 - Swandivedigital, a New York-based design and communications agency today announced publication of Creating A Trusted Information Network for Homeland Security, the second report by the The Markle Foundation Task Force on National Security in the Information Age. The Task Force report was released in Washington D.C. on December 2, 2003.

The 172 page two-column report, concludes that the U.S. government has not yet taken advantage of America's technology expertise to fight the war on terrorism. In it's report, the Task Force catalogs current gaps in the nation's system for analyzing and sharing intelligence and details the elements of a proposed System-wide Homeland Analysis and Resource Exchange (SHARE) Network that would more effectively combat terrorism while protecting privacy and other civil liberties.

"Using currently available technology, the government can set up a network that substantially improves our ability to prevent terrorism and protect civil liberties," said Zoë Baird, President of the Markle Foundation and co-chair with James Barksdale of the Markle Task Force on National Security in the Information Age. "Public trust in a network that uses information about people in the U.S. can only be achieved if government-wide guidelines for information sharing and privacy protection are established after open public debate."

The Task Force -- whose members include some of the nation's leading experts on national security who served in the Carter, Reagan, Bush and Clinton Administrations, as well as leading experts on information technology and civil liberties -- calls on the President to:

• Set the goal of creating the network;
• Issue clear government-wide policy guidelines for the government's collection and use of domestic information, including private sector information about U.S. persons;
• Clarify the respective roles of DHS, the Terrorist Threat Integration Center (TTIC), the FBI and other federal agencies involved with collection and analysis of domestic terrorism information.

Swandivedigital worked closely with Task Force Associate Director, Mary McKinley, to ensure that the publication "look and feel" accurately reflect the weighty and serious nature of the subject matter while visually presenting information in a clear and engaging manner. Additionally, the Task Force report had to serve as an attractive companion piece to the first Task Force report released in October 2002.

"Given the text-heavy nature of the project, one would think the design aspect of the publication would be a snap," commented swandivedigital Principal and Creative Director, Brian Reisinger. "but it's a more interesting and time consuming challenge than one might think. This is a high profile report that is going to the White House and to national leaders, to time-pressed people who receive dozens of these reports and need access to information quickly. It forces us to go back to the primal essence of print design -- typography and layout -- and that is actually rather exciting."

"On that level we believe we succeeded," added Swandivedigital Senior Producer and Founding Partner, Raphie Frank. "We were flattered and not less than a little amused that even critics of the report had something nice to say about the report itself. For instance, Jay Stanley, communications director of the ACLU's Technology & Liberty Program, felt the report did not go far enough in addressing privacy concerns. Still, he was quoted in the Washington Internet Daily as commenting 'The typeface is very nice. The binding is handsome.' That's not something you hear commented upon every day in the national press.'"

To download a copy of Creating A Trusted Information Network for Homeland Security or for more information on the Task Force, please visit www.markletaskforce.org.

About the Markle Foundation
Emerging information and communication technologies possess enormous potential to improve people's lives. The Markle Foundation works to realize this potential and to accelerate the use of these technologies to address critical public needs, at present principally in the areas of health care and national security. For more information, please see: www.markle.org.

About swandivedigital
Swandivedigital (www.swandive.com) is a next-wave convergence design and marketing communications agency specializing in brand conception and evolution, interactive design, and integrated marketing materials for online and offline campaigns. Swandivedigital's clients include emerging businesses seeking a distinct look, existing companies looking to "graduate" to the next level, and Fortune 500 companies with unique goals.

The swandivedigital mission: "Great design... on purpose" is based on the agency's belief that good design is fundamentally about effective communication - the intentional structuring of clear, aesthetically appropriate, persuasive visual and editorial messages to successfully advance social, personal or business goals.

For more information, please contact:
Raphie Frank, Senior Producer | 917.202.2610

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