“An engaging, alarming, and enlightening book, one that is certain
to be among the most important books on surveillance in the
twenty-first century.” —Siva Vaidhyanathan, author of Antisocial
Media Never before has so much been known about so many. CCTV
cameras, TSA scanners, NSA databases, big data marketers, predator
drones, “stop and frisk” tactics, Facebook algorithms, hidden
spyware, and even old-fashioned nosy neighbors—surveillance has
become so ubiquitous that we take its presence for granted. While many
types of surveillance are pitched as ways to make us safer, almost no
one has examined the unintended consequences of living under constant
scrutiny and how it changes the way we think and feel about the world.
In Under Surveillance, Randolph Lewis offers a highly original look at
the emotional, ethical, and aesthetic challenges of living with
surveillance in America since 9/11. Taking a broad and humanistic
approach, Lewis explores the growth of surveillance in surprising
places, such as childhood and nature. He traces the rise of businesses
designed to provide surveillance and security, including those that
cater to the Bible Belt’s houses of worship. And he peers into the
dark side of playful surveillance, such as eBay’s online guide to
“Fun with Surveillance Gadgets.” A worried but ultimately genial
guide to this landscape, Lewis helps us see the hidden costs of living
in a “control society” in which surveillance is deemed essential
to governance and business alike. Written accessibly for a general
audience, Under Surveillance prompts us to think deeply about what
Lewis calls “the soft tissue damage” inflicted by the culture of
surveillance. “A sprightly tour down some of the surveillance
society’s most claustrophobic corridors.” —Cory Doctorow, New
York Times–bestselling author
Les mer
Being Watched in Modern America
Produktdetaljer
ISBN
9781477313817
Publisert
2017
Utgiver
Independent Publishers Group (Chicago Review Press)
Språk
Product language
Engelsk
Format
Product format
Digital bok
Forfatter