ISSN in international public administration: The case of the publications office of the European Union

Abstract

The assignment of ISSN numbers to continuing resources identifies them whilst ensuring the traceability of their evolution over time, for instance possible changes to the types of media on which they are made available to users. Even during this age of new media technologies and electronic dissemination, the identification of these resources remains essential. Access to electronic resources can not be satisfied with a permanent URL; it is only a mechanism to access the publication through a simple standardized string. It does not provide the necessary information regarding the identification of the publication itself. Even though publications produced by governmental bodies are mostly not for sale but rather freely made available to the citizen for no charge, their identification through the ISSN provides invaluable information to the readers. Unlike traditional publishing where titles remain more or less stable, proof of their popularity, continuous resources in the world of public administration are often updated to reflect changing events and priorities. So alongside its role of identifying key titles of serial publications, the ISSN can also be used to monitor the political and social changes over a given period.