Introduction and Initial Reflection

I am a junior at the University of Washington Tacoma studying Communications. I went to Curtis Senior High School in University Place and graduated in 2009. I currently work at Forza Coffee Company, a local coffee franchise, and have worked there on and off for 6 years. I am partially fluent in Spanish as my step family is from Mexico, it has been a great cultural influence on me. After college I want to travel around and see all of the amazing places the world has to offer. I have a little sister who is 13 years old and she is the light of my life! I couldn't ask for a better sibling and friend, it is one of my greatest pleasures being able to watch her grow up and be a part of that process. In my free time I like to watch movies, play softball, dabble in a bit of video game play, play the guitar. I love doing hot yoga and romping around with my friends on nice days. I also love to shop, a lot.

chapter 7: surveillance visibility and popular culture

"The "viewer" society in which we live is not merely a surveillance society, where the few watch the many, it is also a mass media society, where the many watch the few." pg 140. This quote was really interesting to me as the media and popular has changed so drastic over the years. Similar to that in the movie "Wall-e" we have become a society that is constantly surveilling the few. This chapter explored different ways popular culture and surveillance have been superimposed on one another. How literary works have forged a basis for what surveillance stands for, how cinema has transformed surveillance into a seemingly negative concept, and the cultures associated with it. Using prominent examples like the films "Minority Report" and "Conversation" to further support the different ways surveillance is used or could potentially be used. It seems the juxtaposition between the synopticon and the panopticon is thoroughly discussed, and that we as a society have moved away from the panopticon and more towards the synopticon. As our culture had shifted more towards the use of media, technology, popular culture and the like, our curiosity of others has augmented, therefore creating more customers in the realm of voyeurism. This had propagated the world of reality tv, and our desire to watch those whom in the past had lived privately. Society has become fascinated with the "lives on display" type of media, and it has thrived and is still thriving. It seems that wherever we go in our popular culture the ability to identify surveillance is always present. As we are surrounded by media outlets, both current and primitive, that are readily accessible to us.