03/07/07
Cops are bloggers
North Port Police have their own Web site forum
* The North Port Police Department has started
their own blog on a service to discuss issues concerning them in an
anonymous venue.
NORTH PORT -- Police officers now have a way to discuss issues of concern to them anonymously -- their own Web blog.
LEO Affairs(TM) (www.leoaffairs.com) hosts the nation's largest blog
for law enforcement. There you will find Sarasota County Sheriff's
Office, Florida Highway Patrol, Florida Department of Law Enforcement,
and now North Port Police Department.
A blog is a Web-based journal where people provide commentary or news
on a particular subject, and may do so anonymously, sharing comments
with each other. Blogs can be open or closed, and some may require
identification and permission to join in the discussion.
Technorati, a blog search engine, tracked almost 60 million blogs as of November, 2006.
According to its Web site, LEO Affairs "is a knowledge base for both law enforcement and corrections officers."
Although LEO Affairs states its service is not "agency or state
specific" and is not meant to be a "slam site," the primary reason the
site exists was based on an internal affairs investigation at another
police department. From that, it grew to provide forums where police
and the public can discuss concerns.
NPPD's blog, a little more than a month old, has discussion threads
about vehicles, raises, and comments about Police Chief Terry Lewis
sharing plans for improving policing.
In addition to police, some members of the public and the media can
participate in the blog. "News Flash," for example, is a user who posts
media coverage on stories of concern to the police department. News
Flash makes similar posts to the Sarasota County Sheriff's Web site.
To visit the forum, go to forums.leoaffairs.com and scroll down until
you see the "Florida" category. Agencies are listed alphabetically.
You can e-mail George McGinn at gmcginn@sun-herald.com.
By GEORGE MCGINN
Staff Writer
|