Issue link: https://let.epubxp.com/i/342119
dent journalists the tools to create an immersive news experience." Even more than optimal maneuver- ing, UAVs can provide photographers with data to help guide investigations. They can collect photos of an area, then rectify those photos to produce high-resolution maps and digital eleva- tion models. This data can answer questions like: How much coal ash actually spilled into the river? How large was this chemical spill? How has the ground changed on a week-to- week basis, and does that match the government or industry reports? Mickey Osterreicher, gen- eral counsel for the National Press Photographers Association (NPPA) and a reserve deputy sheriff, says two years ago news-gathering drones were a non-issue. Now they're everywhere. His time in uniform provides him with a unique outlook on the topic, combined with his 40 years' experi- ence in print and broadcast journal- ism. According to Osterreicher, elec- tronic news gathering is merely an extension of the right to photograph and record in public. "It's something I deal with almost on a daily basis nationally, where pho- tographers are being interfered with, and/or arrested by officers for doing nothing more than being in a public place, photographing and reporting. "It was nice when I was trying to educate journalists and citizens about their First and Fourth Amendment rights, but then I found that it doesn't really matter if the journalists or citizens know what those rights are if the police don't understand and respect them." This year at ILEETA Osterreicher conducted training on journalists' right to photograph and record. The First Amendment is subject to reasonable time, place and man- ner restrictions. Osterreicher believes that for the most part, law enforce- ment needs and wants to have a clearer understanding of drone laws. "I think…a lot of officers labor under the misconception that they can order somebody to stop photographing and recording in a public place." He says while it may be reasonable to say something like, "Sir, ma'am, I Circle 25 on Reader Service Card Managing the data So you've got a UAV. What do you do with the information it gath- ers? Some companies, such as 2D3 Sensor, are finding ways to help agencies go beyond simple video capture by providing software solu- tions that turn video data it into something smarter—things like area maps, 3D models…even track lines from a vehicle chase. "We can create a very rich, geospatial database of video content that is recorded not only from aerial platforms, but from any camera, really," says Jon Damush, President and CEO of 2D3 Sensor. When connected with an aerial platform, the vehicle- and onboard sensor-agnostic software can indicate not only where the plane flew and its flight path, but also what camera was connected and where it was pointed for each frame. "When you start to index some of these things as the plane's flying, you begin to build up a very comprehen- sive database of aerial imagery," he says; a database that is search- able down to the individual frame. Additional telemetry data associated with a video or aircraft yields archived information that could potentially provide transparency into police operations, or admissible evidence in court for a sequence of events. The extra data could aid future policing efforts, too. Says Damush, "You could study [the data] over long periods of time to determine the pattern of life in any given area". LET_18-23_Drones0714.indd 20 6/25/14 11:58 AM