Is the API permanently down?

[wannabeCitizen]

Am trying to use the Capitol-Words API for my PhD research. I haven't used it in roughly two years, but now the endpoints all are giving me no-response errors. The web page for registering an API key is down as well.

Are you still running this API?

[jsfenfen]

This project is one of several being transferred from sunlight to propublica, and things may be changing / experiencing mild breakage in the interim. @dwillis or @schwanksta might know more about what the plan is...

[dwillis]

Capitol Words will be the last of the Sunlight projects that we get up and running, and the plan is for it to be in place by January.

[dc3105]

Right in halfway of using Capitolwords for my thesis...
is it inaccessible neither via python or R right now? Any way to get the data?

Thanks!

[dwillis]

@dc3105 It is inaccessible right now, unfortunately, but we are aiming to have the site, including the data, back up in January.

[jchaskell]

@dc3105 what do you need for your thesis? I might be able to help.

[mikemfleming]

@dwillis Have y'all been able to make any progress so far? I love this API and was going to use it for a project of mine. 😃

[dwillis]

@mikemfleming it's not back up yet, but we're working on it.

[bfdeitch]

@dwillis are you able to provide an updated ETA? We use this API as a fun programming project for students to learn about APIs as well as see all the funny things politicians say (e.g. a search for 'zucchini' turns up some pretty interesting exchanges). Thanks!

[mikemfleming]

RIP to one of the best APIs on the world wide web 😢

[ldparadise]

Just joining the chorus wondering if it's going to be back up soon, was going to do a workshop on using it sometime in the next few weeks for students

[mikemfleming]

@dwillis @schwanksta @drinks @bycoffe @jessykate @sbma44 @cweber @AlJohri hey just checking in on this again. don't want to pester y'all but is there a timeline on getting this API back up and running? thanks!

[dwillis]

@mikemfleming we've begun work on standing it up. i don't have a fixed date for you, but we want to get this done as soon as we can.

[mikemfleming]

@dwillis awesome, thank you! i was only worried that it had ceased to be.

[dwillis]

@mikemfleming bereft of life it is not.