The Web is the Death of the Anecdote
Surveillance serves not just as a legal and historical record but as a record of rep: proof that you’ve done what you say you’ve done. You bark, and anyone on the mesh can search to see if you also bite. It’s the foundation of the reputation economy.
It’s not just video, of course, but surveillance of all types. Ubiquitous, ever-present surveillance has become the new public record in countless habitats. You’ve seen the phrase, “Links or didn’t happen,” right? Without footage as validation, events almost cease to count. Without evidence, without the perusal and approval of the public eye, events almost do not matter. It doesn’t matter how cute your kid is unless he’s cute on the mesh or in the flesh. If a body falls in the habitat but there’s no audio record, did it make a sound?
Anecdotes have lost all value. The video clip is king, and his throne is shared on the mesh. Reigns are short and full of strife, but the dynasty has been intact since the beginning of the 21st century, when people gladly started trading privacy for doses of recognition from the surveillance society. To kiss the king’s ring.
Notes:
"Links or it didn't happen," if something is not on video, the oral history is worthless.
Folksonomies: evidence anecdotes oral history
Taxonomies:
/law, govt and politics/espionage and intelligence/surveillance (0.658480)
/science/mathematics/geometry (0.432572)
/hobbies and interests/collecting/stamps and coins (0.417604)
Keywords:
new public record (0.955843 (neutral:0.000000)), ever-present surveillance (0.817036 (negative:-0.438800)), surveillance society (0.743046 (negative:-0.255807)), oral history (0.732094 (negative:-0.695264)), countless habitats (0.718177 (neutral:0.000000)), reputation economy (0.710650 (negative:-0.201108)), types. Ubiquitous (0.708217 (neutral:0.000000)), public eye (0.652896 (positive:0.447907)), 21st century (0.649384 (neutral:0.000000)), audio record (0.638353 (negative:-0.215866)), video clip (0.632773 (neutral:0.000000)), mesh (0.594676 (negative:-0.412786)), Links (0.447973 (negative:-0.381263)), events (0.433241 (negative:-0.525593)), king (0.428812 (positive:0.362553)), Anecdote (0.417315 (negative:-0.493590)), perusal (0.410298 (negative:-0.304757)), cease (0.398887 (negative:-0.525593)), strife (0.397880 (negative:-0.255138)), Reigns (0.396995 (negative:-0.615812)), doses (0.394534 (positive:0.336257)), phrase (0.387283 (neutral:0.000000)), throne (0.386295 (neutral:0.000000)), flesh (0.385549 (negative:-0.467659)), proof (0.383478 (negative:-0.240819)), matter (0.381264 (positive:0.410872)), approval (0.380503 (positive:0.447907)), Anecdotes (0.377662 (negative:-0.750407)), Web (0.376740 (negative:-0.493590)), Death (0.376645 (negative:-0.493590))
Concepts:
21st century (0.967677): dbpedia | freebase | yago
Folklore (0.682261): dbpedia | freebase
History (0.643220): dbpedia | freebase | opencyc
Law (0.635176): dbpedia | freebase | opencyc
English-language films (0.623559): dbpedia
Surveillance (0.606335): dbpedia | freebase
Privacy (0.547408): dbpedia | freebase
Human rights (0.541708): dbpedia | freebase | opencyc | yago
Eclipse Phase - Panopticon