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NASA Has Had A Year To Reorganize Their Web Presence. Did They?

By Keith Cowing
NASA Watch
April 28, 2020
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NASA Has Had A Year To Reorganize Their Web Presence. Did They?

NASA Internal Memo: Website Modernization and Enhanced Security Protocols 15 May 2019 (PDF)
“Currently there are an estimated 3,000 public-facing NASA Web sites, yet the top 10 sites receive 80 percent of all Web traffic. Additionally, some NASA partners operate Web sites on our behalf outside of the Agency, creating redundancy and accumulating unnecessary costs. Not only does this duplication of information cause confusion, each Wen site provides potential access for a cyber-attack on NASA’s assets. The shutdown earlier this year gave us a clear view of the cyber vulnerabilities inherent in operating thousands of Web sites. We need to take steps to protect our resources in a hostile cyber landscap, examine our digital footprint, reduce costs, and maximize the effectiveness of communications efforts. In addition to security risk, multiple sites dilute our effectiveness in communicating key messages about our missions.”
Keith’s update: OK. In 2 weeks it will have been a year since the NASA Administrator told NASA to get its whole Internet act together. Has anyone actually done anything called for in his memo? The CIO shows no evidence of having done so (no surprise). She is leaving NASA this week – so there won’t be much incentive to pick up this task there. As for PAO they seem to be perfectly content to list multiple NASA maintained websites for the same mission in their press releases. It is not even clear who is responsible for implementing this directive. I have heard that the task was tossed into the Chief Scientist’s lap – that makes no sense. SMD issued a memo about this in September 2019 yet little seems to have been done since then.
In last year’s memo Jim Bridenstine said “The shutdown earlier this year gave us a clear view of the cyber vulnerabilities inherent in operating thousands of Web sites.” Here we are a year later with an even more extensive shutdown – with everyone, everywhere – relying upon the Internet – for everything. The whole #NASAatHome thing is great but it lacks an overall strategy. Its like HBO and Showtime making everything free for a month so you can binge watch. NASA simply takes everything it has and throws it out at everyone – everywhere. They have so many websites and Twitter accounts that there is little, if any, strategic coordination between these various efforts. They are counting on sheer volume. Soon the content is going to get stale. Then what? It’s like a monstrous swarm of bees – NASA lets them loose and eventually they will sting something, somewhere.
One would hope that this second dose of living and communicating virtually will finally get the message through to NASA. Your cool stuff often gets out to people in spite of your efforts to communicate – and not always because of these efforts.
It takes more than a Twitter hashtag and a few buzz words to coordinate things, NASA. Sure, you’ll get a sugar rush when the SpaceX and Mars 2020 launches happen – but then its back to the same old, same old. We’re all in this remote collaboration thing for the long haul. Its time to start thinking that way.
NASA Just Can’t Stop Doing Web Stuff Twice UPDATE: Three Times, earlier post
NASA’s Confusing ICESAT-2 Websites, earlier post
Progress Made In Making NASA’s Internet Presence Leaner, earlier post
Dueling NASA Websites Update, earlier post

NASA Watch founder, Explorers Club Fellow, ex-NASA, Away Teams, Journalist, Space & Astrobiology, Lapsed climber.

4 responses to “NASA Has Had A Year To Reorganize Their Web Presence. Did They?”

  1. Bob Mahoney says:
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    In all seriousness, Keith, would you consider stepping into the role if asked?

    • kcowing says:
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      Please do not give NASA any crazy ideas 😉

    • fcrary says:
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      I think Keith would last about as long as Alan Stern did in another senior headquarters position. Some things are very ingrained in the NASA bureaucracy, and the duplication of web pages and content is one of them. A serious effort to change them will make lots enemies very quickly. That makes those changes unlikely unless someone at the level of the Administrator is willing to spend political capital to back the changes.

  2. fcrary says:
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    It’s a bit irrelevant, but where did the picture of that nonsensical traffic sign come from? I’m sure it’s directly from Keith’s magical abilities with photoshop. But I could almost swear I’d seen a sign which was similar and almost as bad in the D.C. area. Chrystal City or possibly Arlington. Was there a real inspiration for the picture we frequently see on NASA Watch?