NOAH SHACHTMAN, WIRED - The U.S. Army has ordered soldiers to stop
posting to blogs or sending personal e-mail messages, without first
clearing the content with a superior officer, Wired News has learned.
The directive, issued April 19, is the sharpest restriction on troops'
online activities since the start of the Iraq war. And it could mean the
end of military blogs, observers say.
The new rules obtained by Wired News require a commander be consulted
before every blog update. "This is the final nail in the coffin for
combat blogging," said retired paratrooper Matthew Burden, editor of The
Blog of War anthology. "No more military bloggers writing about their
experiences in the combat zone. This is the best PR the military has --
it's most honest voice out of the war zone. And it's being silenced.". .
.
Previous editions of the rules asked Army personnel to "consult with
their immediate supervisor" before posting a document "that might
contain sensitive and/or critical information in a public forum." The
new version, in contrast, requires "an OPSEC review prior to publishing"
anything -- from "web log (blog) postings" to comments on internet
message boards, from resumes to letters home.
Failure to do so, the document adds, could result in a court-martial, or
"administrative, disciplinary, contractual, or criminal action."
Despite the absolutist language, the guidelines' author, Major Ray
Ceralde, said there is some leeway in enforcement of the rules. "It is
not practical to check all communication, especially private
communication," he noted in an e-mail.
http://www.wired.com/politics/onlinerights/news/2007/05/army_bloggers
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posting to blogs or sending personal e-mail messages, without first
clearing the content with a superior officer, Wired News has learned.
The directive, issued April 19, is the sharpest restriction on troops'
online activities since the start of the Iraq war. And it could mean the
end of military blogs, observers say.
The new rules obtained by Wired News require a commander be consulted
before every blog update. "This is the final nail in the coffin for
combat blogging," said retired paratrooper Matthew Burden, editor of The
Blog of War anthology. "No more military bloggers writing about their
experiences in the combat zone. This is the best PR the military has --
it's most honest voice out of the war zone. And it's being silenced.". .
.
Previous editions of the rules asked Army personnel to "consult with
their immediate supervisor" before posting a document "that might
contain sensitive and/or critical information in a public forum." The
new version, in contrast, requires "an OPSEC review prior to publishing"
anything -- from "web log (blog) postings" to comments on internet
message boards, from resumes to letters home.
Failure to do so, the document adds, could result in a court-martial, or
"administrative, disciplinary, contractual, or criminal action."
Despite the absolutist language, the guidelines' author, Major Ray
Ceralde, said there is some leeway in enforcement of the rules. "It is
not practical to check all communication, especially private
communication," he noted in an e-mail.
http://www.wired.com/politics/onlinerights/news/2007/05/army_bloggers
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