Full-on transparency?
In this year’s quest for more SXSW google geekery and cloud commentary, one session rises to the top: Jeff Jarvis’ solo rendition of “Let’s Get Naked: Benefits of Publicness v. Privacy.”
He opens with a reminder that as Gutenberg’s press came on the scene, large elements of society were “freaked.” They winced at the thought of ideas becoming permanently associated with an author’s personal identity and that it would be an ever-lasting public record - duplicated and shared all-too-easily.
Hmmm…mechanized book-printing causing privacy concerns? Never thought of that. Ok, point taken…go on…
Then he cites a few public uproars over the release of the first personal Kodak camera, wherein (gasp!) photography is put in the hands of the common man (no longer just within the confines of the commissioned photographer’s studio). This meant anyone could just run up to you and steal your photo! Combine that with mechanized print, and it’s mass mayhem.
You see where this is going…Web…Facebook privacy…Wikileaks…wow.
Jarvis shows a photo of a German public street in Google Street View with everything in sharp detail, except for a large privately-owned house that is obscured by pixilation. The crowd laughs as he describes Germany’s intense cultural proclivity for privacy, and confesses that he too laughed when he heard about the Germans forcing pixilation of private homes on Google Street View. He wasn’t laughing anymore when he actually first laid eyes on this photo; once the argument became a visual reality, he shuttered at the thought that laws are being enacted that allow such a desecration of the “public digital landscape.”
He argues that technology – whether Gutenberg’s press or Google’s Street View – is leading us down a righteous, inevitable path that brings us to full-on transparency and that we should not resist it. He believes that transparency breaks down the lies and false perceptions that the ‘powers that be’ use to maintain societal strongholds.
This is a radical view; whether you agree with it or not…you can follow his discussion further. Look out for his forthcoming book entitled PUBLIC PARTS; tentatively subtitled “What Happens When Companies, Governments, and People Let It All Hang Out.” He’s also featured on a weekly iTunes podcast called ‘TWig’ (This Week in Google)that covers the latest Google and cloud computing news.
