The local Fox Affiliate reached out yesterday for reaction to a reported military ban on soldiers accessing You Tube and MySpace via government computers on government networks.

Some comments from an interview ran last night dealined as "Soldiers Blocked from Websites."

This morning's interview is already posted online as well.

Both Greyhawk and Blackfive have weighed in on this, with some difference of opinion.

My take-away is that, just as any employer, Department of Defense (DoD) and military leaders have every right and even an obligation to restrict network and Internet access. At both my Guard and civilian places of employment, I can't usually access streaming video and some other selected websites. Blocking and firewall software (such as Websense) frequently prevent access to some blogs, video, MySpace, and other sites for a variety of reasons.

Soldiers with access to Internet Cafes, phone centers, and even the increasingly available private Internet Service providers (yes, even in combat zones) can still access all of these sites, just not on their work computers or over DoD supported networks.

As many MILBLOGGERS have commented, if you follow the rules already -- not using work computers or networks to blog, post video, etc. -- then this "ruling" doesn't really change anything.

Labels: media, MILBLOGS