Social media has proven to be problematic when paired with businesses and other organizations that deal with sensitive information.
So how does the U.S. Military - one of the most cryptic organizations in the world - handle social media in the information age? Especially when a HUGE percentage of its members depend on online communications to keep in touch with family and friends?
In 2007 the U.S. Marines issued a complete ban on social networking sites such as Facebook, Twitter and YouTube claiming that such sites are a "proven haven for malicious actors and content and are particularly high risk due to information exposure." But just three short years later, in early 2010, the Pentagon reversed the ban for all of the armed forces, giving thousands of troops access to the formerly denounced social tools. Although certain headlines may have lauded the reversal as a huge move, the fine print shows many restrictions still apply.
Social networking sites can only be accessed from non-classified government computers and the policy still allows commanders to limit access at their discretion for various security reasons or to address bandwidth constraints.
Military members are still barred from visiting websites that promote "malicious activity" like gambling, pornography or hate crimes.
“This directive recognizes the importance of balancing appropriate security measures while maximizing the capabilities afforded by 21st Century Internet tools,” Deputy Secretary of Defense William J. Lynn III said in a press release. Lynn completed a full review weighing the benefits and risks of social networking before committing to the use of SNS by military members.
David M. Wennergren, deputy assistant secretary of defense for information management and technology, commented on the benefits of social media use in the military. "The world of Web 2.0 and the Internet provides these amazing opportunities to collaborate," he said. "It not only promotes information sharing across organizational boundaries and with mission partners, but also enables deployed troops to maintain contact with their loved ones at home."
Since removing the ban, it seems that the U.S. Military has taken full advantage of SNS by allowing individual units and their components (numbered in the thousands) to create their own pages to share photos, video and news. http://www.facebook.com/101st?sk=wall Even good ol' Marty Dempsey, Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, has a Facebook page - written in the first person, no less.
Facebook itself had something to say about the DoD's decision to lift the ban. Don Faul,Director, Online Operations at Facebook and a former U.S. Marine, issued this statement about the policy:
“Facebook is heartened by today’s decision to begin to allow our nation’s men and women in uniform and civilian employees across the Department of Defense responsible access to social media, which plays an important role in people’s daily lives. Facebook is an efficient way for people with real-world connections to share information and communicate and can be a particularly beneficial link between those stationed around the world and their families at home.”
The Department of Defense (DoD) now has a whole website - cutely called Social Media @ Dod - dedicated to connecting folks to the U.S. Armed Forces via the interweb. But as lighthearted as the site may appear, there are tons of guidelines, restrictions and user agreements that military members must commit to before participating.
Flip though the DoD's official social media policy below:
Sources:
Parr, Ben. "New U.S. Military Policy Opens Up Social Media to Troops" - Mashable - 26. February 2010 http://mashable.com/2010/02/26/military-social-media/
Cashmore, Pete. "US Marines Banned from Social Media Sites" - Mashable - 4 August 2009 http://mashable.com/2009/08/04/us-marines-social-media-ban/
Miles, Donna. "New Policy Authorizes Social Media Access, with Caveats" 5 March 2010.
Dao, James. "Military Announces New Social Media Policy" 26 February 2010.
DoD Social Media Hub - http://www.defense.gov/socialmedia/
Screenshot: General Martin E. Dempsy: http://www.facebook.com/GENDempsey
It is amazing that just one year ago, there was a ban on social media in the military. This phenomena we call social media has been around for a bit longer than that, it was absolutely necessary for the military to address this topic. Jessica, it was great pointing out that social media is a huge part of staying connected to friends and family. Among people praising the military for allowing an arena for communication, here is an article in the New York Times that explains some of the gaps. http://atwar.blogs.nytimes.com/2010/02/26/military-announces-new-social-media-policy/
ReplyDeleteOne of those gaps being, commanders still arbitrarily deciding whether or not they can use certain social media sites such as Facebook, basically out of a lack of understanding of the site.
The article points out an interesting fact that the Price Floyd, Former Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary of Public Affairs tweeted the new policy!
It's crazy to see the timeline with which things are happening for the military, that is considering how important an aspect social media has become in our daily lives. But I do think that this was an important topic in this area. Also, something that stuck out to me was the comment from Facebook's Director of Online Operations. More specifically the point where he says "responsible access". To this, I have to wonder not only how they define responsible access, but also do they monitor every military personnel's social media participation to make sure it is responsible? That seems a little outrageous, but considering there was a ban until last year, how do they make sure to enforce their social media policy among every member of the military?
ReplyDeleteWOW!!!!!! It’s amazing that Facebook (a social networking site originally created for college students) would have such an imperative impact on our nation. I’m certain that when FB was originally launched that the government never imagined it would be forced to create and implement policies that would have to address it. The fact that social networking is now being acknowledged and addressed by one of the most important entities in our country…… the military, illustrates its significance. While I understand the security risk/concerns that social networking creates for our soldiers and our country, I could still never agree with its prohibition in the military because I feel like it strips away the freedom from those that put their lives on the line daily for our freedom. Its dumb policies such as the aforementioned ban which contribute to the mental instability of some of our soldiers and their inability to adjust back to society once discharged. In today’s digital era, social media is equivalent to the significance of a car here in Detroit (the motor city), it’s damn near impossible to survive without it. Social media and networks have become essential components to our daily lives and provide a convenient avenue for us to communicate. It should be treated as a right rather than a privilege. To that end, I’m glad that the ban has been lifted and the right to communicate has been restored back to the brave men and women of our country. Although after reading the policy it appears that many restrictions still exist, I believe it was important to at least allow access and to show our soldiers that they are not prisoners in their own country by being barred from their country’s preferred/popular form of communication.
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