Technology Key to RNC's Protective Net

The Republican National Convention kicks off Monday in the Big Apple with some 50,000 delegates pouring into Madison Square Garden. Add to that a slew of vendors, dignitaries, speakers and top government officials, including the president of the United States and his entourage, and you have a security nightmare for planners and law enforcement.

With all the tech wizardry available in 2004, the gum-shoe detectives protecting the convention are relying on a lot of security mainstays such as X-ray machines, surveillance areas and walking the beat. Government agencies, including the Environmental Protection Agency, U.S. Postal Service, Coast Guard and "dozens of other federal, state and local agencies were drafted by the Secret Service to play largely behind-the-scenes roles in a security plan that is considered unprecedented in its size and scope. The Republican convention is 'the biggest and toughest' of any of the so-called National Special Security Events, including last month's Democratic National Convention in Boston, said A.T. Smith, special agent in charge of the Secret Service field office in New York," the Associated Press reported.

The Secret Service, the New York Times noted in an article yesterday, is "part of history's most enormous police and military presence at any convention. [It] alone must provide the basics for well over 1,000 special agents, uniformed officers and military personnel supporting the service. This force is assigned to everything from protective duty to counter-sniper teams, bomb squads and canine units."

But there's more than enough state-of-the art equipment on display – and behind the curtain – in the massive security effort. For example, the Engadget blog noted that the "Federal Protective Service is outfitting 200 police officers with special helmet-mounted surveillance cameras that can wirelessly beam a video feed back to a control room so that service commanders can see exactly what's going on in the streets and more effectively issue orders."

In addition to thousands of patrolling law enforcement personnel, the Department of Homeland Security "will use customs agents to X-ray packages and delivery trucks. It will also provide sophisticated surveillance and communications equipment to watch for possible trouble both inside and outside the arena," the AP said. Newsday reported on Homeland Security Secretary Tom Ridge's unveiling for the media of "a 2,000-square-foot room in a security-girdled police headquarters that, he announced, will serve 24/7 as a 'Multiple Agency Coordination' center for law enforcement. It will include about 150 people from 66 city, state and federal agencies, said Ridge, who held a news conference in the temporary center. The room includes computers, televisions tuned to news channels and screens showing city landmarks and streets and an incident log. The video feeds will come from more than 100 surveillance cameras at such high-profile locations as the Brooklyn Bridge, Holland Tunnel and Madison Square Garden."
• The Associated Press via the Seattle Post-Intelligencer: Even Postal Service on RNC Security Duty
• The New York Times: Secret Service Plans for Its Biggest Logistical Test (Registration required)
• Newsday: Ridge: City Security Strong
• The New York Times: Ridge Reviews Security in N.Y., Declaring 'We Are Prepared' (Registration required)

New York City Police Commissioner Ray Kelly has some high-tech plans for monitoring the RNC. "Kelly talked about an array of devices, including some to defend against bomb attacks, that together would create, 'a comprehensive security net over Madison Square Garden for and during the course of the convention,'" Newsday reported. And KABC-TV in Los Angeles said the site "will be a fortress: traffic kept off the streets nearby and undercover cops riding the subways below. City officials showed off some new gadgets they have to help keep the city safe; including urban assault vehicles, and mobile command centers. Menacing equipment for the purpose of safety."

In the Wednesday news conference with Ridge, Mayor Michael Bloomberg said: "Other elements of the convention's security plan will be less visible, but just as important. There will also be robust security measures implemented near the Convention site, such as the installation of car-stopping ... barriers in the area and high-tech vehicle scanning equipment."
• Newsday: High-Tech RNC Security Unveiled
• KABC-TV: Security Preps Begin For the RNC

Technology companies are working behind the scenes at the convention. Newport, Rhode Island-based LiveWave Inc. is working with the DHS to beef up video surveillance systems at federal buildings in New York City in advance of the RNC, Mass High Tech reported. Hewlett-Packard announced yesterday it is the official provider of mobile technology gadgets for the convention, including HP Tablet PCs and copiers – proving that the convention is not only for marketing candidates, but for companies to flash their wares too.
• Mass High Tech: LiveWave Lands Video Surveillance Deal For RNC

Bloggers in the House

The convention will become the media's main story next week, and reporters from TV stations and newspapers won't be the only ones roaming the convention. Bloggers, or pundits that pen Weblogs, will also be part of the coverage fray, though not as many as at last month's Democratic convention.

The Wall Street Journal said "the official blogger group will number about 15, a tiny fraction of the estimated 15,000 journalists expected, and less than half the size of the accredited Boston blogger set. 'That's just the number we landed on,' said convention spokeswoman Alyssa McClenning. She wouldn't discuss how convention planners chose the group, but said the bloggers 'reflected a mix of ideologies.' Adding to the blend are some delegates and traditional journalists who also plan to blog from the convention. In the accreditation process, Republican convention organizers invited particular bloggers, while the Democrats used applications. But the result is the same: a lot of home-team support. Most Boston bloggers were solidly in the John Kerry camp, while most New York bloggers plan to vote for President Bush. A handful of centrist bloggers are attending both." The RNC blog corps includes David Adesnik of OxBlog and Matt Margolis of Blogs for Bush (no question where his interests lie). The Blogs for Bush site has a whole gaggle of writers. (The media site Cyberjournalist.net posted a complete list of bloggers covering the convention.)