Urban Innovation

Boston, New York Police Commissioners Talk Privacy and Public Safety at CityLab

October 8, 2013

The video above features the full conversation with the Boston and New York City police commissioners.

Privacy and public safety have been popular topics in the months following NSA contractor Edward Snowden’s leak of classified government documents. On the third and final day of the CityLab summit, the subject was discussed at length by those who have to balance the two on a daily basis, including Boston Police Commissioner Ed Davis and New York City Police Commissioner Ray Kelly.

In the video below, Kelly made it clear that just like everday citizens expect more transparency of surveillance activities, the New York Police Department would like that same transparency about what’s going on in their city — from the federal government.

Kelly updated the audience on the changes of his police department over the past few years, with new squads and new technology, as shown in the video below.

The panel before the police commissioners featured a law professor, cyber security expert and government official. During a wide-ranging conversation just prior to the police commissioners,’ panelists discussed the meaning of privacy and its importance in society. In the video below, Onatrio Information and Privacy Commissioner Dr. Ann Cavoukian describes how living in a constant state of surveillance can trample on one’s creativity and risk-taking.

Check out the CityLab playlist on our YouTube channel to see more videos from the event.

And click here to view all of our CityLab blog posts.