Comments on: Google updates maps after Katrina 'airbrushing' incident

Under fire for replacing post-storm images with older, higher-res shots, search giant installs 2006 aerial photographs of Gulf Coast region.

[p40tomahawk]

Not the only one

I checked Gulfport Mississippi both before and after today's story. Gulfport is shown alive and well on Google Satellite.

I could see how this would happen, by the way. Hamilton Township NJ satellite view never showed the "new" train station--not all that new, so they were just using old imagery. Not a conspiracy or anything.

[Kostagh]

Google Earth is not a big deal...

Actually there are areas of Europe, which I know up close and personal, that are represented with images as old as 2003. And that is in the present April 3rd, 2007.
So... No wonder they do that. I do understand it's an immense job to even update such a visual database, but... hey!

[nicmart]

Worst yet, the congressman

By what authority right does a congressman demand that a
private business display photos to his liking? Does he think he's
the congressman from Myanmar? How does Google's minor faux
pas compared to the obliteration of a city as a result of a
negligent government in which Brad Miller is a prominent
official? How does Google's trivial error compare to the mass
bloodshed resulting from the war that Mr. Miller avidly supports?
Does Google support itself with confiscated money and ravenous
consumption of pork, like Mr. Miller and his colleagues do? Mark
Twain had it right: congress is America's only native criminal
class, and Brad Miller is a thug in good standing.

[Mister Winky]

Exactly

This a publicity hungry technophobe trying to get his day in the sun at the expensive of a private enterprise that offers more useful tools for free than any company in recent memory.

I'm not a fan of all of Google's practices (especially with respect to Chinese censorship), but for this blowhard public official to bluster on like this is some isidious cover-up is insulting. How would he like it if Google just says screw you and takes Google Maps offline (which they have every right to do)? Would that serve the public benefit?

Politicians trying to build their names off of Katrina compassion should be called out.

-Mister Winky

[LuvThatCO2]

Congressman

While I dont want to get into the habit of defending democrat politicians, this guy has just as much right as anyone does to contact google and demand an answer. He's still a citizen w/ free speech rights, you know.

[Sunflare98]

cnet spin

If you read the real AP story, you'll see that the congressman was more concerned about New Orleans, Louisiana, or government officials paying off Google to make it look like the reconstruction was progressing better than it is. CNET seems to pick and choose what "news" they like to report...

[DryvBy]

Worst yet, you were born

I agree with your 'congressmen has no right' statement, but uhh, idiot, how is it the government's fault that a hurricane happened? Let me explain something pretty simple: the people that were still there were idiots. They stayed there, even with warning that a hurricane was going to hit hard. How come the intelligent people left and the dumb ones didn't? I don't feel sorry for those people because no one should feel dumb for stupidity. The government isn't our baby sitter. If something crazy like that happens, oh freakin' well. The government should care less. I didn't really like the fact that my tax dollars were going on these people who were using it for strippers, purses, dvds, etc.

I live in Texas and we recently just had a tornado and I didn't see a huge "WE NEED TO SAVE THE PEOPLE IN TEXAS AND GET THEM JOBS AND GIVE THEM $2000!!". And if my house were to have been blown over, my stuff trashed, etc, I wouldn't expect the government to do anything because stuff happens and I should have insurance on my house. But let me guess... it doesn't count because it didn't hit television.

[LuvThatCO2]

I cant even begin to understand...

I cant even begin to understand why Google thought the pre-storm images were a good idea. Even if they were better quality, they were certainly less accurate.

[aabcdefghij987654321]

Not stated but possibily implied...

is the concept that Google Earth was generally swapping older high resolution images back in to replace newer lower resolutions and the fact that the images could be prior to a major disaster wasn't even thought of. It's also possible that some of the post-Christmas Tsunami images could have been replaced by this mechanism as well but hasn't been noticed/reported yet.