role of surveillance Flashcards
P1: What is Foucault’s key argument about modern surveillance?
Societies shifted from sovereign power (physical punishment) to disciplinary power (psychological control through surveillance).
How does the Panopticon exemplify disciplinary power?
Prison design where inmates self-regulate assuming they’re watched – mirrors modern CCTV/social media monitoring.
What is a strength of this theory?
Explains cost-effective control (e.g., fewer police needed if people self-discipline).
What is a limitation?
Overestimates compliance – many resist surveillance (e.g., hackers, protesters) or are unaware of being monitored.
Link to “role of surveillance”:
Shows surveillance as behavioral regulation tool, but effectiveness depends on individual awareness/perception.
P2: How does the Synopticon differ from Foucault’s Panopticon?
“Many watch few” (public surveils elites via phones/media) vs. “few watch many” (state surveillance).
What is an example of sousveillance?
Citizens filming police brutality (e.g., George Floyd case) to demand accountability.
How does this shift surveillance’s role?
From state control → public transparency, potentially democratizing power.
What does McCahill (2012) critique?
Elites still control narratives (e.g., censoring viral videos, using deepfakes).
Link to question:
Surveillance now mutual, but power imbalances persist – corporations/states can suppress bottom-up scrutiny.
Give a real-world example.
UK’s Gangs Matrix database targeted young Black men based on music tastes/associations.
How does this reflect neoliberal values?
Prioritizes efficiency/risk management over justice – treats people as data points.
What is Lyon’s (2012) criticism?
Creates social sorting – marginalizes whole groups (e.g., Muslims at airports) as “high-risk”.
Link to question:
Surveillance here serves crime prevention but at cost of systemic discrimination.
P4: How does surveillance reproduce bias?
Operators act on stereotypes (e.g., CCTV targeting Black youth) → more arrests → confirms “dangerous” label.
What did Norris & Armstrong (1999) find?
CCTV watched young Black males 3× longer than others, despite equal behavior.
What is the “feedback loop of criminalization”?
Over-surveillance → more arrests → justifies more surveillance → repeats cycle.
How does Gary Marx (1988) extend this?
Even “neutral” tech (e.g., AI facial recognition) encodes human biases in design.
