Apple blocks 'objectionable' app that reports deaths from US drone strikes

http://www.guardian.co.uk/technology/2012/aug/30/apple-blocks-us-drone-strike-app

Software giant Apple has blocked an app that would notify subscribers every time a US drone carried out a deadly mission on the grounds that it is "objectionable and crude", according to the program's designer.

Josh Begley, a graduate student at New York University, developed Drones+ to provide up-to-date information on strikes, using reports collated by the London-based Bureau of Investigative Journalism – an organisation that tracks the use of unmanned CIA aircrafts.

But repeated attempts to get Apple to offer the software at its app store have been fruitless. At first, Begley was informed that the program – which he hoped would raise awareness of the growing death toll from drone strikes – was "not useful" enough and did not appeal to a "broad enough audience".

The company position has since shifted, but only in the reasoning behind its refusal to stock Drones+.

In the latest rejection email, Apple reportedly informed him: "We found that your app contains content that many audiences would find objectionable, which is not in compliance with the app store review guidelines."

A video demonstration of Drones+ shows that the app is designed to flash up an alert when a new strike is reported, with details of how many people were killed. An interactive map shows subscribers where the air assault took place and how many others had taken place near it.

Begley, 27, told the Guardian that he didn't expect the app to be wildly popular, but hoped it would raise awareness. He added: "I built it because it is something I would like to use myself".