Bloomberg Questions Google Earth Critics

Mayor Bloomberg yesterday questioned an effort to compel Google Inc. to blur out satellite images of sensitive city infrastructure in its computer program, Google Earth.

"It is a legitimate concern," Mr. Bloomberg said. "However, given the number of satellites that can read your license plate from the sky, I think at this point that's not necessarily where a terrorist would go."

An assemblyman of Queens, Michael Gianaris, is pressing Google to voluntarily censor images in Google Earth of potential terrorist targets in the city, while also lobbying the Department of Homeland Security to force the corporation's hand.

Google "understands the government's interest to set limits wherever appropriate," a spokeswoman for the company, Megan Quinn, said.