The novel We, The Watched takes place in a nation where it’s just about impossible to avoid the eye of a surveillance camera. But it might not be as sci-fi of an idea as you’d think.
You’ve probably seen plenty of CCTV signs and cameras around your town, too. Starting today, I invite you to watch the watchers and share your own pics of surveillance in action on my Facebook page at facebook.com/wethewatched.
Most cameras and signs are in public spaces; please DO NOT break any laws as you are snapping pics.
I couldn’t agree more with the spirit of this post. It sort of ties into the whole “accountability” thing with law enforcement and whatnot. How timely to also mention not-breaking-laws as there was recently some news here in the US regarding DC’s Chief of Police laying down some reasonable rules for police officers when it comes to citizens photographing/recording police actions in public. I felt like this was a breath of fresh air.
Story (one of many):
http://arstechnica.com/tech-policy/2012/07/dc-police-chief-announces-shockingly-reasonable-cell-camera-policy/
Source:
https://go.mpdconline.com/GO/GO_304_19.pdf
Of course, just one day after this came out, news broke of a DC police officer confiscating a man’s cell phone who was recording police punching a man they were arresting. So there’s that.
Make no mistake, law enforcement is a good thing. But let’s keep them accountable and know exactly where to define the line of “too much”.