“Blog entries have a different structure,” Ulicny said. “They are typically short and are about something external to the blog posting itself, such as a news event. It’s not uncommon for a blogger to simply state, ‘I can’t believe this happened,’ and then link to a news story.”
In this example, Ulicny said, there might not be much of interest in the blog posting, yet the fact that the blogger called attention to this story can be significant to understanding what matters.
The linking system is essential to blogging and, many times, is the entry itself. The PR department of the Office of Science Research used an example from the Islamic world (the great European cartoon brouhaha) but I question how easily this model can be used to monitor domestic bloggers and bloggers exercising basic freedoms around the world by analyzing their link choices.
It is a grave danger. Recently, in a Blogcritics article on Virginia Hall, a WWII heroine, I linked BC to the CIA. Had I written on the horror of the Oklahoma City bombing (by a home-grown terrorist) and linked to one of the survivalist sites that shows bomb-making recipes, would I be marked as a potential mad bomber? If someone else links to the Amputee Coalition of America or the American Heart Association, will they be denied medical insurance?
There are millions of such links that might be misconstrued or are just plain none of anyone's business. The point is blogging has been, seemingly, the forefront of personal freedom. Freedom is frightening to those who hold the reins of power.
What will happen with the Air Force' (and other intelligence agencies who will or have jumped into to blogo-fray) incursions into this world? Will the freedom be contained? Or has the Internet (originally a military toy) become too broad? Will blogging and vlogging (and whatever comes next) be too much for the snoopers to snoop?
Ask Google and the Chinese blogging community.
Article comments
1 - John Guilfoil
So much for privacy and free press.
2 - Condor
I find it hard to believe that this is just now occuring or starting to occur. I would bet cash money that this practice has been in place for some time.
3 - Howard Dratch
Take a look at John Guilfoil's newer article on "Blogs Under Surveillance For Terror Intel". It has more thoughts and fears on the same subject.
Condor must keep his "cash money". I would make no bet. If the Department of Defense has this article on its unclassified site; it is long past the starting stage. Who knows what lurks in the shadows of the world of spies and snooping robot crawlers?