@Randem

I recently read an item in the Photoethnography blog pointing to a New York Daily News article reporting that the MTA has a secret film file on photographers.

If this is true, this is very disturbing. Both amateur and professional photographers are being turned into modern day boogeypeople. And when a terrorist incident happens, what do the authorities want? They want people to send them their tourist snapshots so that they can try to see if they can spot the bad guys before the act. Argh!!

Just a quick civil liberty note: You do not have to hand your film over to any one in uniform just because they ask for it. You can do so voluntarily if you want. If they try to force you to hand it over, then do so (refusing would be bad) but ask them under what authority they are requesting it, ask for a receipt and be sure to follow up. Even if you were breaking the law, they would still have to issue a receipt for the evidence that they are taking into custody. Sigh....

This disturbs me too. Mainly, I despise how easy it has been to turn anyone with a camera into a suspicious person. And it's not as if they're suspicious of everyone who photographs things, just those with video cameras or high-end still cameras. That means that a terrorist with a 5-megapixel cameraphone can do all the reconnaissance he wants without interruption, and now he'll feel safer doing it because the authorities will be busy harrassing me.

Labels: national security, photography, politics