Blogs start a dialog between travelers, those serving them

— -- Starting this week, passengers cooling their heels at Transportation Security Administration checkpoints in five major airports may notice more than storage bins and disposable booties: black stickers emblazoned with "Got Feedback?" and "www.tsa.gov/blog," the Web address of a new blog aimed at explaining TSA policies and eliciting traveler comments.

TSA officials hope the stickers, plastered on screening equipment at Boston, Dallas-Fort Worth, Los Angeles, Salt Lake City and Washington's Reagan National, will drive traffic and conversation to the oft-maligned agency's Evolution of Security blog, taglined "Terrorists Evolve. Threats Evolve. Security Must Stay Ahead. You Play A Part."

Launched Jan. 30 and featuring four to five weekly posts written by TSA employees, the blog attracted about 31,000 unique visitors last month and has generated more than 5,000 responses — evenly divided, says spokesman Christopher White, between scorn and praise. A "Delete-O-Meter" keeps tabs on how many comments have been banned — 137 as of this week — because they contain profanity, threats or personal attacks, or because they require the agency to reveal sensitive information. One that made it through, in reaction to a recent post about the agency's use of canine teams for explosives detection: "Will these dogs growl if you try to get their badge number?"

Evolution of Security is among a small but growing number of travel blogs and online communities sponsored by hotels, cruise lines and other companies, as well as government entities such as state visitors bureaus. Designed to engage travelers and tap into the "social media" craze, they range from top-down, PR mouthpieces to folksy ramblings about employee colonoscopy exams.

Though their reach may be limited and usefulness marginal — a recent Jupiter Research survey notes only 2% of online travelers use other travelers' blogs as research tools — official blogs can provide "a real glimpse into the brand" and a way to gauge public response quickly in a crisis, says Debbie Weil, author of The Corporate Blogging Book.

Southwest Airlines discovered that this month when its 2-year-old Nuts About Southwest blog fielded some 300 public comments about a proposed $10.2 million fine by the Federal Aviation Administration and accusations that the airline flew at least 46 planes without required fuselage inspections.

The Southwest blog is written by a rotating roster of 30 employees, from mechanics to pilots. Known for its breezy style, it draws about 60,000 unique visitors a month. But it generated dings from fellow bloggers for a surfeit of what Weil calls "corporate speak" in five posts about the controversy and its aftermath, including Southwest's grounding of 38 planes after discovering they had not been properly inspected for cracks.

Southwest spokesman Brian ("Blog Boy") Lusk says blog posts will continue to address the issue, and he adds that "we eventually want to have some employee input." Meanwhile, public comments have been heated, ranging from "A frequent flier of Southwest for many years. I have four simple words. You lost my trust." to "I have faith in SWA——-More than any other airline. If you lack confidence STAY HOME !!"

Still, Lusk says, the blog response about maintenance pales in comparison with that on other hot-button topics, including Southwest's ill-fated test of assigned seating in 2006 and the saga of San Diego's Kyla Ebbert, who was reprimanded last year by a Southwest flight attendant for her revealing attire before the airline issued an apology and a "mini-skirt" fare sale.

Though both the TSA and Southwest have taken a team approach to blogs, other corporate efforts are more personality-driven.

John Heald, a veteran cruise director with Carnival Cruise Lines, started blogging a year ago at the company's request and drew 900 fans to his "blogger's cruise" in January. Though a disclaimer notes that the "views and opinions represent my own," Heald's chatty entries give an insider's view of "Fun Ship" life. On one of the many passengers who wind up at infirmaries with nasty sunburns: ?He is red as the smokestack and his legs look like mine after I once put loads of pop rocks candy in the cats? litter tray and my dad gave my legs the good news with his slipper.?

Marriott International CEO Bill Marriott, who turns 76 next week, doesn't use a computer and dictates his weekly Marriott on the Move posts. The blog is "a way to do online what he does already," which includes visits to 250 hotels a year to check in with customers, spokesman John Wolf says.

Marriott's musings range from the importance of good tips (he recounted a heartwarming 1930s story about an ice cream sundae and a grateful waitress) to deflating the urban legend that hotel key cards contain personal information.

"This isn't a tool for planning a vacation," Wolf says. "But customers are talking online, and we want to be part of the conversation."

Other sponsored efforts, including a handful of blogs produced by state tourism offices, are clearly hoping to steer that conversation. VisitFlorida.com, for example, spotlights paid experts who blog about such topics as fishing and nightlife.

Hyatt's yatt'it.com, an online community launching March 31, will combine comments from members of its Gold Passport frequent guest program with tips from concierges in 40 destinations.

But official forays into the blogosphere remain scarce — with good reason, says Troy Thompson of the Arizona Office of Tourism and the blog Travel 2.0. "We talk about all these new technologies, but maintaining a blog takes a good chunk of time," he says. "And you have to be open and honest … a lot of people haven't gotten past the idea that there can be negative comments."