Lessons from that Tenderloin camera Web site On San Francisco

nevius_0084_df.jpg C.W. Nevius, columnist with the San Francisco Chronicle. Photographed in San Francisco on 8/3/06. (Deanne Fitzmaurice/ The Chronicle) nevius_0084_df.jpg C.W. Nevius, columnist with the San Francisco Chronicle. Photographed in San Francisco on 8/3/06. (Deanne Fitzmaurice/ The Chronicle) Photo: Deanne Fitzmaurice, The Chronicle Photo: Deanne Fitzmaurice, The Chronicle Image 1 of / 4 Caption Close Lessons from that Tenderloin camera Web site 1 / 4 Back to Gallery

Last Saturday, we told you the story of Adam Jackson, who pointed a Web camera out the window of his Tenderloin apartment and created a hot Internet site.

Today, we tell you how it all went wrong, from a flurry of death threats to being targeted by cyberbullies. But just when it looked like the thugs had bullied Jackson into taking down his site, the community rallied behind the concept of neighborhood cameras. In fact, the interest may be stronger than ever.

There are lots of lessons here. For starters, Jackson has learned about privacy on the Internet: There isn't any. Second, neighborhood cameras work - for better or worse, they focus attention on life on the street.

And third, did you ever wonder why it is so difficult to get people to step up and try to make things better in troubled neighborhoods? It's because there are always some self-appointed guardians of the status quo who make it as difficult as possible.

One week ago, adamsblock.com was a cool new Web site that was picking up additional viewers every day. It consisted of two cameras on Taylor Street that aired 24-hour views of the street. A microphone picked up street sounds, and a chat board allowed regulars to talk about what they were seeing. They counted buses, raced each other to post the numbers written on taxis, and developed a little culture of their own.

The site was a hit not only with viewers from all over the world, but with neighborhood groups. They realized that when they saw crimes occur, they could immediately report them to the police, and that's just what they did.

"I assumed the community would be against it," Jackson said Friday. "But the community embraced it."

The guys who didn't like it are members of a graffiti group. When they found the site, they made a banner advertising their Web site and held it up in front of the camera. Jackson decided the banner was meant to encourage graffiti and deleted it. The group took that as an affront.

"Their argument was free speech," Jackson said. "My feeling was it's my camera. I can do what I want."

And that's when he ran into the real problem. As Jackson admits, he was remarkably naive about posting his personal information. He not only included his e-mail address, but the address of his apartment and which floor he was on. His phone number was also available.

Jackson began to get e-mailed threats. Someone posted photos of Jackson and his girlfriend on their own Web site. Somebody called his employer to say Jackson was a pedophile.

"We just wanted you to know that we know we are being watched," said one message, "and we don't like it."

When Jackson called the police about some letters being spray-painted on the street, the harassment intensified. He was a snitch. Anonymous thugs threw rocks at his window at night, and he was followed to work by a group of guys in hooded sweatshirts.

"It wasn't like I was crazy," Jackson said. "This was guys walking up behind you, staring at you."

This Web camera wasn't a crusade by Jackson, it was just an idea he had that he thought would make things safer and quieter in the neighborhood. He was even planning an Internet fundraiser for Glide Memorial Church. But it quickly turned into more trouble than it was worth. He'd already made the mistake of revealing too much - now he just wanted to make it stop.

The first offer the bullies made was so outlandish even Jackson, worried about his safety, turned it down.

"They said unless I videotaped myself admitting all this and got it played on the local TV news, they would come after me," Jackson said.

The alternative was that Jackson post an apology written by the group, which included phrases like "... what a racist and ignorant human being that I am ..."

Jackson did that. He also arranged to move out of his apartment and to take down the cameras.

So the bullies won? Not so fast.

Neville Gittens, spokesman for the San Francisco Police Department said, "We want to follow up on this. We're going to reach out to him to encourage him to make a police report."

And, with his apology, Jackson announced something else. The site will continue, but not under his direction. An unnamed party already has a camera up at a different Tenderloin street corner.

Jackson said at least three other sites have sprung up independently, and there has been interest in linking all of them together through ourblock.com. It is possible that neighborhoods all over the city will have 24-hour cameras. That was Jackson's idea all along.

"People have already started doing this themselves," Jackson said. "There's no way to stop it now."