I am I

Reality television. Why do we watch it? Is it (as was proposed) a Panopicon? Is it a reflection of our true nature, or just vulgar entertainment? Do we watch reality TV and think that is the mirror by which we judge civilization? Or is reality TV another way of keeping us docile? Is it just another tool designed to make us comfortable with the idea of being watched? Or is it that we are just so involved is the cult of celebrity and "grabbing our 15 minutes of fame" that we are willing to make total asses of ourselves?

We were discussing this in class the other day.

There were no good answers, but lots of good questions.

One point brought up was about Bentham's Panopticon. With the ability we have now to track an individual and how much smaller privacy becomes, the argument said that reality shows are (as stated earlier) a tool to make us more comfortable with the idea of being under surveillance all the time.

The argument for constant surveillance (as I am sure all of you know) is that it will help reduce crime. I say look at places like England where they are under constant surveillance and the crime rate is not noticeably lower.

I'm sure more will come of this, as the argument for constant surveillance continues to be brought up and the people seem to be more and more willing to let their privacy go for the illusion of security.