Digital Age |Managing Surveillance: Surveillant Individualism in an Era of Relentless Visibility

Authors

  • Shiv Ganesh Massey University

Keywords:

countersurveillance, relentless visibility, sousveillance, surveillant individualism

Abstract

Contemporary surveillance occurs in the context of communicative abundance, where visibility is not only easy but relentless: never ending, far reaching, and ceaseless. Managing surveillance therefore has considerable implications for democratic politics, workplace control, economic practices, cultural politics, and individual subjectivity. This article identifies surveillant individualism, or the pivotal role that individuals play in surveillance and countersurveillance, as a major feature of contemporary surveillance management. It seeks to clarify current research trajectories on digital surveillance management and to chart a course for organizational research on surveillant individualism.

Author Biography

Shiv Ganesh, Massey University

Shiv Ganesh (PhD, Purdue University) is Professor of Communication and Head of the School of Communication, Journalism and Marketing, at Massey University. His research engages with substantive issues that arise from the intersection of communication processes with globalisation, digital technologies, and civil society organising.

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Published

2016-01-05

Issue

Vol. 10 (2016)

Section

Special Sections

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