ELLSWORTH — Appearing in the local paper’s police log used to be a source of fleeting — if intense — embarrassment.

Grandma might remember your brush with the law, but most of the general public would forget by the next news cycle. The information would be available only to those willing to sift through old issues.

The Internet changes all that. Many newspapers now post all their content online. A future employer, college admissions counselor or prospective blind date could uncover an unflattering news story years after it was published simply by typing a name into a search engine.

“To some degree that information will be around forever,” said Chris Crockett, the Ellsworth American’s information technology manager and webmaster. “It’s really just a sign of the times.”

Many people would like to see that information go away.

Crockett estimates he receives fewer than a dozen requests each year to remove material from the paper’s website, fenceviewer.com.

Some people do not want a record of their purchase or sale of a property easily found; others want the record of a past crime removed.

“Normally, the answer is ‘no,’” Crockett said. “The information that we put up is, of course, part of the public record. We don’t arbitrarily take things down.”

He noted that the paper has been collecting and reporting such information for more than 150 years. The delivery system has just changed.

That is little consolation for one local mother whose son was charged with possession of marijuana. She asked that her name not be used to avoid drawing further attention to her son’s record.

She said she has no problem with the charge being published in the paper or even online for a time.

“The problem is the perpetual nature of online newspaper archives,” she explained.

“I don’t believe that a young person should have their job prospects curtailed indefinitely because of making one poor choice.”

Are We Sharing Too Much on Social Sites?

News organizations account for just a trickle of the information flood on the Web.

Plenty can be learned about people from what they post about themselves.

Not even a fake name can save you, as Arizona congressional candidate Ben Quayle, son of former Vice President Dan Quayle, recently learned.

The Associated Press reports that Quayle first denied then confirmed allegations that he wrote for a racy website now known as TheDirty.com. The website’s founder said Quayle used the alias “Brock Landers,” the name of a character from the 1997 movie “Boogie Nights” about porn stars in California, in his posts.

In addition to being fertile ground for political scandal, material posted online also has led to criminal charges.

Ellsworth police last year used footage posted on YouTube to identify members of an alleged fight club in town. Six teenagers were charged with unlawful prize fighting as a result of the investigation.

For more community news, pick up a copy of The Ellsworth American.