One of the best descriptions of what it is like to work in Washington, DC, can be summed up with the old canard, “After all is said and done, there will be a lot more said than done.” I have every confidence that will be the situation following the earthquake we experienced early Tuesday afternoon. Less than 24 hours from the event, it is presumptuous to draw final conclusions, but there are some things that need to be addressed immediately.
The Bay Area Transit Police, amusingly known as BART, show that law enforcement still doesn’t understand the value — and challenges — of social media. The police force reacted to planned flash mobs by shutting down cell phone service in the BART stations. Hey, if you can’t talk to one another, how are you going to organize, right? Thank God BART wasn’t around when the Founding Fathers were trying to hammer out the U.S. Constitution. Perhaps the transit agency would have drummed the unruly bastards out of Philadelphia before they could dream up the First Amendment.
RealClearWorld – Reuters – World – Aug 11, 2011 – UK may disrupt social networks during unrest Britain is considering disrupting online social networking such as Blackberry Messenger and Twitter during civil unrest, Prime Minister David Cameron said Thursday, a move widely condemned as repressive when used by other countries.
Sean Smith: Ink Spill: Inside the Battle to Shape the News Coverage of Last Year’s Oil Gusher One year ago on Friday, the runaway oil well in the Gulf of Mexico was capped, ending one of the longest-running and most popular reality news shows in American history. At the time I was the Assistant Secretary […]
The Associated Press: Supreme Court to review warrantless GPS tracking The Justice Department argued that warrantless use of GPS devices does not violate the Fourth Amendment’s ban on unreasonable searches. It also said prompt resolution of the divergent court opinions is critically important to law enforcement.
Mexicans turn to social media for news about drug crimes | McClatchy The messages brim with urgency as they pop across computer screens and into cell phones, made all the more stark by their brevity. “Gunshots heard along Guadiana Blvd,” one Durango resident reported on his Twitter account one recent night. “Three burned-out trucks along […]
Forget Osama’s Diary: Taliban Now Tweeting In English – Epic Center
Social media clearly played a role in the Arab Spring movement. Now let’s see if it advances the agenda of … the Taliban?
Disaster victims expect more than Facebook can deliver, FEMA director says – NextGov
The ease with which disaster victims can pass along safety information and track down friends and family on social media sites has created expectations that emergency responders often can’t live up to, officials said Thursday.
FEMA Embraces Social Media – HSToday
In the aftermath of the earthquake that struck Haiti in January 2010, wireless communications returned quickly – to the surprise of Craig Fugate, administrator of the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA).
I understand today is the last day for Sean Smith, the assistant secretary for public affairs at the Department of Homeland Security. He leaves under a bit of a cloud for having threatened to decapitate staff in the press and legislative affairs shops at Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE). So it makes me a little nervous to write this post; I don’t want to end up getting pistol-whipped with a stapler.
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