Comments on: surveillance society http://www.pantopicon.be/blog/2007/03/27/surveillance-society/ Fri, 09 Dec 2011 09:31:19 +0000 hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.3.1 By: a thousand tomorrows » Blog Archive » big brother's new gadgets http://www.pantopicon.be/blog/2007/03/27/surveillance-society/comment-page-1/#comment-3986 a thousand tomorrows » Blog Archive » big brother's new gadgets Tue, 18 Sep 2007 09:13:26 +0000 http://www.pantopicon.be/blog/2007/03/27/surveillance-society/#comment-3986 [...] as the 4million CCTV-camera nation is turning into a classic example of the trend of security and control obsession by now. A few days [...] [...] as the 4million CCTV-camera nation is turning into a classic example of the trend of security and control obsession by now. A few days [...]

]]> By: Jeroen Coumans http://www.pantopicon.be/blog/2007/03/27/surveillance-society/comment-page-1/#comment-478 Jeroen Coumans Tue, 27 Mar 2007 20:26:33 +0000 http://www.pantopicon.be/blog/2007/03/27/surveillance-society/#comment-478 It's really a double-edged sword. On the one hand, camera's and surveillance call forth issues of privacy and power, although you have to ask yourself how many of these camera's are operational and being monitored (e.g. Bentham's Panopticon - the thought of being watched is more powerful than the act itself). And on the other hand we're seeking the attention, the audience and the subsequent feeling of being real, by participating in reality tv and sharing lots of private information, photo's and video's via Web 2.0 websites such as Flickr, YouTube and MySpace. The question of privacy and surveillance has changed almost 360 degrees into a question of having audience as a measure for social status (also see http://jeroencoumans.nl/journal/age-of-the-audience). Or perhaps such a point of view is the real danger lurking here. It’s really a double-edged sword. On the one hand, camera’s and surveillance call forth issues of privacy and power, although you have to ask yourself how many of these camera’s are operational and being monitored (e.g. Bentham’s Panopticon – the thought of being watched is more powerful than the act itself).

And on the other hand we’re seeking the attention, the audience and the subsequent feeling of being real, by participating in reality tv and sharing lots of private information, photo’s and video’s via Web 2.0 websites such as Flickr, YouTube and MySpace.

The question of privacy and surveillance has changed almost 360 degrees into a question of having audience as a measure for social status (also see http://jeroencoumans.nl/journal/age-of-the-audience). Or perhaps such a point of view is the real danger lurking here.

]]>