Not to start up a conspiracy theory but is reality TV like these shows showing us that soon enough we will have no privacy? Granted these people do sign up for these shows and know what they are getting into, but it makes me wonder if they are foreshadowing our future. Ever heard the saying Big Brother is always watching?
What if in the future we live in a world where Big Brother is actually always watching. It actually makes me think of a book I read in high school. This book was George Orwell's 1984, the book was based in a dystopian world where most of the population had fallen victims to the on-going war, infinite government surveillance, and propaganda. The citizens of this world were being constantly watched and being told what to do by Big Brother. These citizens have no privacy and are never allowed to do what they want to do in their own lives. They aren't allowed to live a normal every life and live in constant fear.
These two very prominent examples makes me think could our world ever become like this? Will there ever be a point when we are in 24/7 surveillance? Personally I think that no, we hopefully will never reach this point with our world and technology. But others think otherwise, that with our technology our world has already slightly become like the one in 1984. Heres an article that has very strong points of how some of our world is like 1984. After reading this my opinion has slightly changed and I've become a little worried.
What are your thoughts? Do you think we will ever get to the point in our world where we are in constant surveillance? And where the saying "Big Brother is always watching" will be relevant?
Thinking about this, I first thought about my mom, because she watches a lot of reality tv like the Real Housewives and Keeping Up With The Kardashians. I always wondered why they would want their lives shown out to the world, their every step shown to the world? To think about the show Big Brother and The Real World and that they have to live in one house that isn't theirs and always be on camera doesn't seem like that much fun. I think about, if being on surveillance with my whole life on camera, ever did happen in the real world, with all of the new technology that keeps being put out. I don't think that this will happen only because I feel that so many people would be against it. People would probably push back because they don’t want everyone to know their business. Then I think about when we go out in public almost everything is on surveillance and some may have cameras at their house for security reasons. This show might not be all that different than our lives other than it is broadcasts on tv. I feel like very few people would sign up for a show like Big Brother. They might be looking for a completely new experience or fame. This was very interesting to think about.
ReplyDeleteTo add onto what Tyree said, the thought on people actually consuming this type of media is crazy. Wanting to know what other peoples lives our like. Seeing and trying to compare their lives to the people on the screen like any reality show like the Kardashians. But how much of it do you really think is real? I feel they pick and choose what they really want to show to the audience. Whenever I walk into a room with my mom or sister watching a show like this I always say " how can you watch this crap?". I find most people like to mind their business and really don't like when people try to get into it. I also don't think our society would move into this kind of world when everything we do would be recored right now. But it’s a very investing thought how Tyree brought up the idea of a new way of getting fame. Everyone seems to want to be famous and have that kind of coverage on them these days though. So it makes me think if it could a generational thing. Younger people growing up watching these shows and wanting to be able to get on one. Which makes me think maybe later in our society this could happen.
ReplyDeleteThis is the aspect of technology that I really question the direction of and would like to attempt to help change the way it’s heading. This loss of privacy was brought about by the constant connection that the internet provides as well as the tragic events of9/11. Since then we have rapidly lost rights, freedom and privacy, generally not that many people care and that is really what scares me. Is it the internets fault entirely? I don’t really think so but it cetertainly fuels the fire. What do I do blame however is the irresponsible use of technology by powerful corporations and government entities. Technology is really only as good as it’s intentions in my opinion and I don’t believe that these systems of mass survallience have a positive intention. This is abuse of technology for power which over and over again we’ve seen can be very dangerous. What baffles me even more is how only some really geniunely care even thought this information is out in the open. What happened to an America where we actually really care about our civil liberties?
ReplyDeleteIt is important to remain diligent these days about this important social issues that tie technology, privacy and social issues together. These are issues that effect all in the digital space, their information, their privacy and their identity. We need to let these powerful entities know that we demand that they use technology with honest purpose instead slimy ones. We do not deserve to be spied on and instead enjoy some seperation between the government and our private lives.
I cannot believe we've been able to mention privacy, reality shows, Big Brother (literary or televised), and somehow NOT mention The Truman Show???
ReplyDeleteWhile reality shows such as Big Brother or The Real World were "real" in that they took place inside our sphere of IRL, I think The Truman Show is a much more comprehensive look at what it means for personal privacy to be breached through the production of reality television entertainment.
I'd love to elaborate more on the premise of The Truman Show and its significance in the privacy/surveillance/reality television conversation. However, I've found an extremely well-written article explaining these ideas which can be found here: https://www.avclub.com/the-truman-show-was-a-delusion-that-came-true-1826535781?utm_medium=sharefromsite&utm_source=avclub_copy&utm_campaign=top.
One quote from the AV Club piece I particularly love states that "Not only would we turn a nobody famous, as the film postulated, but we have succeeded in turning everybody famous, each of us the micro-celebrity of our own narratives, thanks to the internet. As with Truman, the cost of this constant drip-feed of personal gratification—likes, retweets, and so on—is privacy." I would say that the term personal gratification could be interchangeable with fame, as so much of what fame brings also kills an individual's privacy.
I can't say anymore about this article and its relevance here without being redundant. It's a fantastic article. Go read it.
Your mentioning of 1984 was interesting, though I noticed your lack of mentioning the Proles. While the society that most of George Orwell's novel focuses on, inside the fictional country Oceania, is under surveillance and oppression of the Big Brother authority, the Proles lived by different rules. They had their own social classes, enjoyed blissful ignorance of the world's problems, and were granted much more personal freedom in exchange for their lack of involvement or menacing with the Big Brother system. They were not kept under the same crippling authority that everyone else had, because their sole function was to work and breed. My question is this: how does their lack of regard for privacy/security/freedom compare with people groups of today? Some people think that we are already living in an Orwellian society of constant supervision and disintegrated privacy. If so, who are the proles? And do they have it better, or should we pity them? Do we already?
Side note: the reason "Big Brother is watching you" reminds you of the book 1984 is that George Orwell created the phrase for his storyline. That is the literal reference.
I have always found the concept of reality TV to be insane because I could never imagine having a camera on me at all times recording everything I do. I suppose good for the cast members for being willing to try something like that. The main one that comes to mind for me in relation to reality TV is Jersey Shore. It was fundamentally the same thing as the real world but for some reason the world was addicted to watching those cast members on TV. I also feel that reality TV has not exactly been ‘real’ since that show. There are reality shows such as the bachelor that are fairly obviously not real life.
ReplyDeleteI also think that when discussing reality TV it is crucial to bring up The Hills final scene as the curtain drops to indicate to the fans that the show was not exactly reality after all. I myself struggled to come to terms with this idea. I had seen in interviews that the cast members would get text messages from the producers starting fights or sending two enemies to the same night club to induce drama. I just find it interesting that reality tv is not always reality.