TSA Blog’s Comments Get Policy Altered
February 7th, 2008 by JILL MILLER ZIMON
Maybe Hillary Clinton’s idea about blanketing the government with blogs isn’t so bad after all. According to Wired Threat Level:
On Monday, fliers asked the TSA’s [Transportation Security Administration] new blog Evolution of Security why some airports were requiring passengers to remove all electronics - MP3 players, cell phones and even power cords - from their carry-on bags. So the first name-only bloggers at TSA looked into it, figured out it was local rogue offices and shut down the policy.
These practices were stopped on Monday afternoon and blackberrys, cords and iPods began to flow through checkpoints like the booze was flowing on Bourbon Street Tuesday night. (Fat Tuesday of course).
So thanks to everyone for asking about this and for giving us a chance to make it right. Our hope is that examples like this validate our forum….
Though less than a week old, the TSA blog has gotten thousands of comments, ranging from diatribes about the liquid ban to calls for government-provided booties for travelers to wear when their shoes are being x-rayed.
This action by the TSA means that someone who cared read the blog, checked out what was behind the comments and then got enough or had enough authority to get the policy changed.
That’s pretty cool. Now, if only those TSA bloggers could learn to spell “blogosphere.” Seriously, though - check out the TSA blog. I kind of like it.
Category: TSA, Intelligence Community, State Department, Domestic Surveillance, Freedom of Speech, Civil Liberties, Technology |
