attention industry

The Panoptic Dilemma: 1 (of 4)

Panopticism: Foucault’s expansion of Bentham’s ultimate prison, as an explanation of the mental effects of a surveillance culture. Technological determinism comes into play as, at the time, the idea of total observation was only possible within the confines of a massive power structure. Panopticism was a reaction to government domination, at least in part.

Democratization: The ongoing levelling of the playing field. Originally in relation to the internet’s ability to provide equal voice and access to information regardless of traditional influence, but now becoming a wider aspect of the shift of technology. What once took a tv studio now takes a laptop. What once took a laptop now takes a smartphone. Individuals can create, curate and communicate on a level once limited to organizations.

Social Media: Social interaction, moved online. This shift makes it more durable, free of time and space bias, asymmetrical, and scalable. A more detailed explanation is possible, but hopefully unnecessary.

Prisoner’s Dilemma: A collective action problem, based on the premise that the best possible outcome for all involved is only possible with complete trust - whereas the result of trusting and being betrayed is the perceived or real worst possible result, and the result of betraying others is the best option for each individual stakeholder. This leads to situations in which people settle for a negative result for everyone, rather than risk letting another entity come out ahead at the expense of others.

The preceding four concepts are the basis for my current theory of post-millennial online social communication.