全球范围兴起的公共视频监控建设热潮,一方面反映了各国政府对公共安全的关注;另一方面又引发了对公民权利受到监控侵害的担忧。如何在公共安全与公民权利之间获致平衡是呼吁对公共视频监控系统进行严格有效监管的根源。美国政府在涉及公共视频监控系统监管时,其三个权力机关基于其自身在政权结构中的地位和角色,具备一定的能力和局限。深植于美国政治制度中的三权分立与联邦分权制度最终成为美国政府在监管公共视频监控时无所作为的关键因素。由于司法和立法的监管突破在短期之内不可行,行政监管或将成为公共视频领域公民隐私权保护的最后一道屏障。然而,在三权分立相互监督制约的体系中,惯常的立法和司法监督缺乏会导致行政机关权力滥用可能性增大。美国面对新兴公共视频监控带来的挑战时陷入的困境,对我国的相关制度也具有重要的启示意义。 The upsurge in the construction of public video surveillance around the world reflects on the one hand the concern of governments of all countries on public security and on the other hand raises concerns about the monitoring of the rights of citizens. How to strike a balance between public safety and civil rights is the root cause of the strict and effective regulation of public video surveillance systems. When the U.S. government deals with the regulation of public video surveillance systems, the three government agencies have certain capabilities and limitations based on their own status and role in the power structure. The separation of powers and the system of federal decentralization rooted in the political system in the United States eventually became the key factor in the U.S. government’s inaction in monitoring public video surveillance. As regulatory and legislative regulatory breakthroughs are not feasible in the short term, administrative regulation may become the last barrier to the protection of citizens’ privacy in the field of public video. However, in the system of mutual supervision and restriction of the separation of powers, the lack of customary legislative and judicial supervision will lead to the increased possibility of abuse of power by administrative organs. The predicament that the United States faced in the face of the challenge posed by emerging public video surveillance also has important implications for the relevant system in our country.