This world we are living in is a stark amalgamation of Brave new World and 1984; the medium which is imparting relentless information is also the medium monitoring our moves and thought patterns. Two classic dystopian models of control, that seemed far-fetched at the time of their publication, or even at the turn of the century, now engulf us incessantly. Aldous Huxley’s ‘Brave New World’ presents passive control through information overload and distraction while on the other hand George Orwell’s ‘1984’ portrays behavioral monitoring through surveillance to garner mass obedience.
This medium, the social media, whose use surged considerably during the global COVID pandemic, is a source of information, surveillance and passive control. Before the pandemic, during the Arab Spring, and then during the ensuing wars, national and international crises, social media played a pivotal role in raising social awareness and driving mass movements.
The current scenario is that through a constantly open window, we can view the events unfolding throughout the world, and we are unable to make a direct impact at all. And yet, just by watching, we are creating an algorithm that makes our thought patterns visible to the powers that be. Locally, nationally and internationally, what we watch, share or comment on is under surveillance and facilitating data capitalism. Our behaviors and even our thoughts and approaches are not just being monitored and predicated but also being affected.
Since long now, we have been tuned to see ghost towns, innumerable deaths with casualty tally on a daily basis, civilians getting relentlessly bombarded, police brutality, natural disasters, kids getting evaporated right off the face of this earth…and we are probably immune. We experience a roller coaster of emotions, witnessing a genocide, a concert, a must-visit place with natural beauty, a viral food recipe and then back to the genocide. It’s a constant rush of emotions, ranging from empathy, anger, regret, fear, desire, ridicule, wonder and rage, again.
Not that the current events have not moved the world; we have seen mass protests and movements for boycott. At least some of the world leaders have rallied for the underdogs, and masses have gathered for individual victims. I still feel like Punch, the monkey, has received more global sympathy than the human suffering that is surrounding us. Probably because it is emotionally safer to invest in a monkey, as it still falls under our circle of influence and the human suffering is still just in our circle of concern.
Even as we are witnessing a world war unfolding before our very eyes, the mainstream media can still portray the cold hard facts as fluid and create a perception of grey instead of black and white. There is confusion even with clear numbers and an influx of opinions giving way to a lack of moralistic stands even with visible quantitative disparity.
Modern digital systems both inform and control, creating a hybrid dystopian reality predicted by Huxley and Orwell. We are monitored, manipulated, and maneuvered to a direction we are not ready to take. That fiction is our reality today.
