U.S. Blurs High-Tech Washington Images [View All]

[Systematic Chaos]

By TED BRIDIS, AP Technology Writer

WASHINGTON - The government is selectively blurring some of its highest-quality aerial photographs of Washington to hide objects in plain view on the roofs of the White House, Capitol and Treasury Department.

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Experts said they feared the unusual decision reflects a troublesome move toward new government limits on commercial satellite and aerial photography, a booming industry driven by recent technology advances and including some major companies based outside the United States.

Some commercial satellites already can snap photographs almost as detailed as those images shot from airplanes ordered blurred by the government.

Some experts also questioned the effectiveness of blurring one set of government-financed photographs. Tourists can see the roofs of the White House and U.S. Capitol from dozens of tall buildings downtown, and the Web site for the National Park Service shows a June 2002 photograph of the White House from atop the Washington Monument.

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