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The Senate Rules and Administration Committee has updated existing limitations on sites that Senators are allowed to link to from their official pages.

Senators may now link to YouTube and flickr, for example, in a ruling Sen. Dianne Feinstein (D-CA) dubbed "a major step into the future," reports Ars Technica.

The tempest stirred last summer when Rep. John Culberson (R-TX) used Twitter to poke fun at the archaic restrictions: "Before I could post a Tweet I would have to get approval of the twits that run the House!" he jested on the microblogging site.

His comment was a response to a proposal by Rep. Michael E. Capuano (D-MA), who sought to impose new guidelines for legislators that post videos on sites like YouTube. Capuano expressed concern about state officers "using public money" to post opinions on outside sites that might broadcast partisan — or simply inappropriate — commercials and "related" videos on their video pages, reports The New York Times.

The proposal wouldn't ban legislators from using such sites; rather, it would permit use of them on a case-by-case basis.

Republicans, including Culberson and Rep. John Boehner (R-OH), said such bureaucratic maneuvering would be too slow and called the proposal an attack on free speech. "Leadership has told me personally that they will next focus on limiting our access to text, blogs, and other social media outlets on the Internet," Culberson claimed.

Capuano insisted this was not his intention. "We are not currently seeking to address anything other than video — not blog postings, online chats or any other written form of communication anywhere on the Internet," he stated, adding, "Any assertion to the contrary is a lie."

But the damage was done and public lines drawn. The Sunlight Foundation, a watchdog institution, launched a campaign called "Let Our Congress Tweet." At some point, Culberson even attempted to "interview" Capuano on his video-enabled cellphone for publication on Qik, a video-streaming site. Capuano refused. Shortly thereafter, Culberson drew up a counterproposal, demanding that the House lift most restrictions on external content.

Under the update to chamber rules, Senators may now link to certain third-party sites, including some social media ones. No product endorsements, partisan material and unrelated personal information will be permitted, reports Roll Call.

The Rules Committee distributed a list of permissible sites to the Senate. It is not evident whether the House will follow suit — although if it does, the issue will not surface until the next Congress.