Home Archives Fall 2013 Surveillance

Surveillance

Editors’ Comment

You’ll want to touch up that make-up before you leave the house; Big Brother likes a pretty face.
In an era where we surrender our privacy to the government for “protection,” the government’s gaze over us has grown broader. The surveillance-state pervades nearly all we do: no phone call, Facebook “like” or email is exempt. The government, as well as corporations, have ever-expanding access to our communications, purchases and interests. That white picket fence is no longer enough to hide you from prying eyes.
In the frenzy of information coming out surrounding the NSA’s surveillance, many new questions arise about our privacy and the intent of whistleblower Edward Snowden. The media hasn’t made this debate any clearer (Snowden Through the Media Lens, pg. 22), but Buzzsaw hopes to offer some clarity.
Some may seek privacy in far-away places, but the surveillance apparatus spans the globe (Big Brother Goes Global, pg. 16).
People are paranoid about being watched, but feel like they can do little about it (Like Peeping Toms, Seesaw). Even intimate photos and videos shared with significant others aren’t protected from the World Wide Web’s all-knowing gaze (A New Kind of Revenge, pg. 32). Women especially are watched and “preyed” upon in today’s rape culture, but a movement towards sexual education and consent culture is spreading throughout the US (Safe is Sexy, pg. 20).
Higher education has indoctrinated young adults into the surveillance economy, especially robotics and computer engineering majors from Worcester Polytechnic Institute (Robotic Ramifications, Seesaw).
The cameras are always on. The watching will never stop until we realize and start an active discussion about this privacy breach across many platforms.
Smile. You’re on candid camera.

<3 the editors

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