We are about to welcome 2009 and at the risk of encouraging
censorship, I cannot recommend GoogleEarth as a classroom educational
tool until it provides some level of control over inappropriate
content.
A community would not tolerate graffiti on the walls of schools,
libraries or other public facilities nor would it ignore a buildup of
litter and garbage that renders public spaces unusable. Unfortunately,
GoogleEarth now contains more inappropriate YouTube content than
appropriate content.
What is inappropriate? At the very least I would argue that
GoogleEarth is not intended to ignore the geo-relevance of content
to the point that it becomes a glorified version of MySpace. While
YouTube certainly qualifies as such a free-for-all of artistic
expression, I have higher hopes for GoogleEarth. An appropriately
placed YouTube video should contain information about the geographic
location where it is put. For example; a rap video about killing other
"ganstas" is not appropriate for the Great Barrier reef while a rap
video about the Pacific Ocean might be. Sexually suggestive videos
placed at the address of a conservative Church or similar place of
worship could be considered to be just as inappropriate as inserting a
hellfire-and-brimstone sermon over the location of a brothel. While we
can expect fanaticism and insensitivity will occur in any community,
orderly procedures should exist for the community to police itself.
Reeducating vandals and ignorant users in the socially acceptable
usage of shared resources is an important component of stewardship.
Yet no such process is readily available to the stewards of
GoogleEarth. Currently, there is no quick-fix for inappropriate
YouTube content on GoogleEarth:
- Parents & teachers cannot selectively block YouTube content without
blocking all of GoogleEarth as long as it remains a mere on-off
preference.
- User preferences for blocked users in YouTube accounts are ignored
by the GoogleEarth application, there is no filter.
- Current rating procedures for YouTube videos do not screen, alter,
warn, or block YouTube content on GoogleEarth.
- Geo-relevant videos are no longer the standard on Google Earth. For
example, It is unlikely that a video located at the NorthPole will be
about arctic explorers, ice, or polar bears.
While it is possible to click your way out of GoogleEarth and into
YouTube in order to eventually comment or flag a video, it is a
tedious and ineffective process which pales in comparison to the "ease
of abuse" with which bad content can find it's way into GoogleEarth.
As long as this disparity between content and it's geo-relevance
exists, GoogleEarth's greatest promise will remain unfulfilled.
What are the solutions?
First, The Google Earth application should require a password for
setting preferences. This would allow Parents and teachers to use the
application with or without YouTube, etc.
Second, YouTube videos displayed within the Google Earth application
should allow the same ease of community review as YouTube videos
viewed in a browser; 1 click flagging for inappropriate content, 1
click user blocking, etc.
Third, YouTube videos displayed within the Google Earth application
should have a "Geo-Relevance" flag which allows any logged-in user the
opportunity to alert Google as to a videos improper location or
suggest a better set of coordinates for it.
These 3 ideas would go a long way towards helping our community
protect a wonderful resource which has been left unattended and
vulnerable to those who would allow it to decay.
Does anyone agree?
-Tim "Mr. Science" Perkins
www.theMrScienceShow.com
