If Big Brother is watching us, can we fend him off by watching him back? Thanks to the proliferation of smartphone videos and social media connections, we’re starting to find out.
The past, present and future of surveillance technology was the focus for one of the sessions last week at Seattle Worldcon 2025, this year’s edition of the world’s premier science-fiction convention.
Surveillance societies have been a frequent topic in science fiction, with George Orwell’s “1984” (which gave birth to the slogan “Big Brother Is Watching You”) and “Minority Report” (a 2002 Tom Cruise movie based on a 1956 novella by Philip K. Dick) among notable examples.
But last week’s session focused primarily on fact, not fiction.
Futurist and sci-fi author David Brin noted that his nonfiction book on privacy and freedom, “The Transparent Society,” came out 27 years ago. “Unfortunately, too many of the chapters are completely relevant today,” he said.
