The Drone Countdown Timeline
Using this timeline generator, I visualized the Center for Democracy and Technology’s Drone Countdown. Because of the template I use for this site, it’s not the greatest treatment ever, but it works.
The Drone Countdown
The Center for Democracy and Technology has written a pair of blog posts that are fantastic resources for anyone following the drone debate in the US. The first is a timeline showing exactly what the FAA Modernization and and Reform Act of 2012 specifies. The second is a call for the FAA to consider the impacts to privacy and a description of how they might do that. Both are interesting and you should read both.
From the CDT’s timeline, here’s a list of what I see as the big dates for using drones for journalism.
May 14, 2012: Expedite the licensure of government drones
The Secretary of Transportation must expedite the licensure of government-owned drones. The rules for this expedited licensure for the government will be similar to what RC pilots use now (operator has to be able to see the UAV, they have to fly it under 400 feet and during daylight conditions). Journalists across the country should check and see if your local law enforcement is applying for licenses and then follow how your law enforcement agencies are using them.
Aug. 12, 2012: Early integration of “safe” drones
The DOT must determine if certain types of drones (government and non-government) can operate in the national airspace before completion of the required planning and rulemaking that the FAA law requires. They have to look at if the drone can operate safely and not harm national security. The DOT has to develop rules to make this happen, but there’s no deadline set for them.
Feb. 14, 2013: Deadline for the comprehensive plan
The Secretary of the DOT must submit the final version of the comprehensive plan to Congress. It must also include a 5-year roadmap that gets updated annually.
Aug. 14, 2014: Final rule for non-government drones and implementation of the comprehensive plan
This is the deadline for the final rule to allow non-governmental drones into the airspace. The DOT must also issue it’s plan to implement the comprehensive plan above.
Sept. 30, 2015: Integration of non-government drones
This is the deadline in the law for non-governmental drones to be added to the national airspace.
Attack of the Drones – How Surveillance May Change our Culture →
My larger point is that the pressure to create the surveillance society isn’t going to come exclusively from the state. Indeed, we may find ourselves in a surveillance society not because the state demands it, but because we want the tools for our own useful and/or selfish ends. Some people may argue that this may level the playing field between citizens and the state or powerful organizations. I hope that is true. But maybe the mass adoption of such tools will simply normalize surveillance in our society and culture. That might, in turn, make it easier for the state, or other organizations, or just everyone else, to monitor us.
Flying torrent server? The Pirate Bay envisions a new drone use →
I can think of a whole lot of reasons why this is impractical, but the idea is going to get a lot of attention.
Out of 'hobby' class, drones lifting off for personal, commercial use →
Soon, experts predict, drones will be used to transport air cargo. Assist with search-and-rescue. Perform police surveillance. Inspect oil pipelines and sprawling vineyards. Follow and photograph tabloid targets such as Lindsay Lohan.Increasingly capable and affordable, as large as jetliners and as small as oversized Frisbees, drones also raise serious questions about privacy and safety.
Drones over America: What can they see? →
“That is going to be certainly some of the tests of what the limits are going to be provided by [paparazzi],” he says. “The paparazzi will want to use drones if they can, and obviously that’s going to raise some very significant questions.”
— John Villasenor, a senior fellow at the Brookings Institution and a professor of electrical engineering at UCLA, in an interview on NPR’s Fresh Air.
ABC News Australia: Drone journalism takes off →
Particularly interesting to me in this story is the description of the feeling of knowing you’re being watched by a military drone. Also, take note of Australian journalists using drones to fly over an immigration detention facility. — Matt Waite
Drones could soon be in the skies over Nebraska, Iowa →
Drone lab founder Matt Waite and fellow University of Nebraska-Lincoln researcher Vishal Singh talk about drones for Omaha TV station KETV.
Eye3 Done Officially Too Good To Be True →
I linked to the Kickstarter project before. This update show’s that was a mistake.
The Drone as Privacy Catalyst →
The development of American privacy law has been slow and uneven; the advancement of information technology has not. The result is a widening chasm between our collective and individual capacity to observe one another and the protections available to consumers and citizens under the law.
