Why is it time to stop filming strangers in public for the thrill of social media?Jason Okunday
〇So when I was young and dressed a bit flashy, a stranger caught me on the phone recording me dancing on the tube on my way to a gay club. As far as I know, the video was never published online. Perhaps he just sent it to the group his chat.
Turning strangers into online content for comedy and entertainment purposes has become a global pastime. and wrap it. A drunk person doing his business on the street, a loving couple getting a little steamy in the supermarket, a man in his own world singing out of tune on a crowded public transport – the list goes on and on. . But the line between lighthearted teasing and digital harassment seems to be thinning by the day.
Recently retired 64-year-old Michael Peacock was photographed dancing exuberantly at London’s Fabric nightclub. This video was uploaded online with captions. The intent was clearly to laugh at the men’s dancing, and the clip also elicited a range of homophobic and ageist reactions, with the man in question telling Vice that hemy heart sank” when he saw a tweet about himself.
We cannot expect a legally protected right to absolute privacy when we go out in public. This means that you shouldn’t intrude on someone else’s personal space or by staring at them. It’s an unspoken code that is rewarded for selling out someone else’s privacy and is evaporating when that person goes viral.
Incidents like Peacock may seem decidedly cruel and unjust, but clearly not everyone thinks so. After all, most of us carry recording devices in our pockets that are designed not only to capture content, but to deliver it instantly. You have to think positively to understand that what is happening is too often a form of anti-social behavior. fun, spontaneity, strict policing of expression, and a disciplinary mechanism for social conformity.
In the days of YouTube and TikTok, there are even curated settings where strangers become supporting characters in unaudited skits.like a candid camera For Gen Z, it’s commonplace for strangers to be pranked or misunderstood for their content. The feeling of being degraded is the same, as users who do may monetize the content.
For example, a Melbourne woman who was unknowingly forced into a “random act of kindness” TikTok said: Described as being filmed as “dehumanizing” without her consent. My friend her Kyle Skies recently fell victim to a YouTube prankster. He was provoked by a series of annoying questions. The video is incredibly funny (no argument for that), but Skies didn’t see it that way.
“I had just run and missed my train, so I was already flustered and frustrated, but that’s what happened to me. I don’t know if anxiety hit me, but I was ready to fight.” he says. “I wanted to slap him, but I had to consider my position as a tall black man.” I wasn’t ready to see it. But it didn’t feel good. His heart started pounding with a little anxiety. I wasn’t ready. The sky is powerless here – unless the footage is filmed in public and reveals certain personal data such as bank details or medical history, subject consent is usually not required (although producing a prank show Professional production companies certainly get written permission from the subject).
Of course, there are times when it is in the public interest to record strangers. Abuses of state power, such as police brutality, pop up. But we need to start thinking more carefully about this dog-eating culture in public. Let’s take an example of someone who looks like a school-aged child, who was filmed screaming at passengers on a commuter train earlier this month. (It’s been viewed millions of times on Twitter.) Many people believe that if you behave obnoxiously and cause public disrespect, you lose the right to expect dignified social norms of privacy, and this includes: would argue that proper social outcomes are necessary. action.
Few of those who made negative comments online thought they might have been watching footage of minors. Yes, and that reaction may have been escalated by a defensive need to stand their ground so as not to appear weak in front of the camera. What does it mean when someone sees a young man smoking an e-cigarette on a train and their first thought turns into ridicule and humiliation? Wouldn’t there have been an incentive to unfold and create content from other people’s meltdowns? Is it really in the public interest to share it?
Until such practices become a social faux pas, you could be out there and someone else’s ticket to social media stardom. It has empowered us.; let alone enforcing privacy laws to prevent strangers being filmed in public is undesirable and impracticable. What can change is social and cultural. React gracefully to each other’s embarrassment and care more about your own business.
https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2023/jan/25/filming-strangers-public-social-media Why is it time to stop filming strangers in public for the thrill of social media?Jason Okunday