In 2024, it’s impossible to not feel watched. From iPhones to Ring Cameras to smart watches, we’re used to the feeling that our devices are tracking us for our health data, shopping habits, and more. But that feeling is a two-way street.

In the Age of Surveillance, internet users, viewers, and everyday citizens become the surveillants. 

The surveilled are influencers, the subject of true crime content, adoptees, and residents sharing camera footage with police departments. These stories raise the question: Who’s watching who?

ONLINE ANONYMITY IS A THING OF THE PAST

The concept of anonymity plays a pivotal role in this digital landscape, raising questions about privacy, freedom of expression, and the responsibility of online platforms.

THE INVISIBLE VICTIMS OF TRUE CRIME CONTENT

Amid abundant stereotypes of the types of people who consume true crime media—they’re more often survivors, activists, and even perpetrators of crime are asking for more thoughtful dialogue in the oversaturated market of crime content.

INFLUENCERS ARE PUTTING FOSTERED AND ADOPTED KIDS IN THE LIMELIGHT- ADVOCATES ARE CALLING IT EXPLOITATION

Many content creators who post about their adopted and/or foster children also include them in brand deals, which can be another way children feel they are robbed of their agency.

FOR INFLUENCERS, ONLINE STALKING IS A REAL-LIFE THREAT

Those in the public eye are no strangers to the privacy-threatening situations that can come from overzealous fans. For social media creators, the uncomfortable scenarios that can occur with devotees of their content are hard to deal with.

POLICE STRUGGLE TO JUSTIFY USE OF FUSUS, A COMMINUTY SURVEILLANCE TOOL THEY FOISTED ON CITIZENS

The Atlanta Police Department said that Fusus, a Georgia-based tech company that creates and assists “Real Time Crime Centers” for police departments around the country was necessary for locating a suspect.