David Lyon’s essay, “Surveillance, power and everyday life,” is a chapter in the Oxford Handbook of Information and Communication Technologies. It was published in 2007, a time in US history when technology was advancing and surveillance by companies was growing with the resources accessibility. The first iPhone was introduced early this year; providing insight to the advancements in personal surveillance and technology available. In Lyon’s essay he discusses the growth of information mining in our society with the growth of information technologies.
As technology becomes more advanced, there is more access to record data and keep track of society’s patterns. In other words, the accuracy and ease of surveillance increases as the technology enabling them does. Lyon describes surveillance as “any focused attention to personal details for the purposes of influence, management, or control.” (Lyon) The information gathered from surveilling provide personal information to help companies and the government manage the population. Similar to the informate, developed through scientific management, and the ability to generate information about the underlying productive process. (Head) As Head described, the office workers being surveilled in “The rise of the reenginners,” Lyon focuses on surveillance as a way to track people’s purchases, everyday actions, behavioral actions and overall maintaining an eye on the society. Lyon then argues that these records attained through surveilling lead to a type of “social sorting.” This is a way that companies and the government can classify people in shopping patterns and profiling, respectively. Being “sorted” by those doing the surveilling, calls for a degree of power to be introduced. Lyon argues that companies categorize consumers based on the information they record in order to better market to them. Surveillance of the consumers purchases help target a particular audience.
As the director of the Surveillance Studies Center, Lyon has the credibility to argue his point on surveillance. Lyon is most known for his concepts of information society, globalization and surveillance. Through his research, he focuses on ICTs, information and communication technologies, and how they enhance the use of surveillance. When there is stronger and more advanced technology, there are more accurate readings and recordings of the surveilled information.The parallel of the debut if the iPhone and the publishing of this piece helps argue the truth in advancing technology and increased surveillance of its users. Having a mini computer in your hand allows the user to manage and track certain actions through the device; while simultaneously being managed and tracked through how the user uses their personal iPhone.
Lyon’s idea of surveillance is still being used in comparisons of technological advances today. His underlying argument that with advancements in technology come increases in the ability to control are present in our society. The US consumer market is subconsciously managed with every swipe of a credit card, tap of a rewards card and purchase nonetheless. In addition, on a smaller scale, personal surveillance of loved ones such as infants and their nannies occur with the advancements of in home surveillance. With such surveillance, there is a call for ethics and respect on our society. Lyon’s argument of who controls the power in surveillance, holds weight in the difficulties in privacy society faces today.
Works Cited:
Simon Head, "The rise of the reengineers," in The New Ruthless Economy (2003).
David Lyon, “Surveillance, power, and everyday life,” in R. Mansell et al. eds., The Oxford Handbook of Information and Communication Technologies (2007).
Related articles:
K. Ball and F. Webster, (2003). “The intensification of surveillance,” In: Ball, K. and Webster, F. eds. The Intensification of Surveillance: crime, terrorism and warfare in the information era. London: Pluto Press, pp. 1–15.
Carlos Rodriguez Casal, (2007) "ICT for education and development", info, Vol. 9 Iss: 4, pp.3 - 9
Tony Fitzpatrick, (2010). “Critical Theory, Information Society and Surveillance Technologies,” in Information, Communication and Society, Vol. 5, Iss: 3, pp.357-378.
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