Safe and Sound
“An intensified sense of individual responsibility combined with—and ultimately re-creates—a perception that babies are very fragile and can easily get into some form of distress...In turn, concerns about safety lead to a practice of vigilance.”
Comes with Parental Control Features
In a parallel world like our own, the Black Mirror episode Arkangel (2017) explores digital surveillance as a means of parental control. As the Arkangel mother begins to second guess the decision to have the chip implanted in her daughter, a technician’s calm voice ensures “it’s free and completely safe.”
In the Black Mirror episode Arkangel (2017), an overprotective mother has her child implanted with a chip that enables control onto the monitored brain.
Image credit: IMDb.
Not only can the person of authority track the location, but they can also manipulate their senses of the monitored individual by toggling on a feature through a tablet, such as blurring imagery that they do not want the chipped individual to see. In the article, Black Mirror’s “Arkangel” takes parental surveillance to its darkest, most obvious extreme, the author notes that the episode’s monitoring device acts as a digital umbilical cord the mother refuses to release for fear of losing her daughter (Framke, 2017).
Hidden Costs of Convenience
In the real-word, “free” services, personalized content, the secured feeling from being looked after 24/7, and other conveniences often come at the hidden cost of user data collection and its usage. For example, Disney World’s MagicBand gives park and resort visitors the conveniences such as contactless access and payment in a wristband that can be personalized with users’ favorite Disney character. Yet the company does not offer an alternative, as Hobbs (2024) notes, “there is no other way into the park, so you kind of have to play by their rules.”
A Technological Theme running through the Black Mirror series
Framke (2017) notes how some Black Mirror episodes feel adjacent to reality as they deliver dire warnings of technologies running amok in fallible hands. When social issues are explored through “science fiction” narratives, through this different angle, individuals are often able to better comprehend the real-world situation.
In the Black Mirror episode, Joan Is Awful, the titular character unknowingly consents to a contract that uses her life as material for a television show.
Image credit: courtesy of Netflix; as cited in IMDb.
Accepting terms and conditions contracts often guarantees that digital service providers can collect customer data and use it as they would like. Evidently, the reason why companies collect customer data goes beyond improving customer experience. Giffin (2024) references another Black Mirror episode, Joan Is Awful (2023), which addresses the dubious use of customer data for entertain purposes.
Also, there are ethical concerns when users allow the continuous recordings of their activities. Referring the Black Mirror episode, The Entire History of You, Neman (2024) notes that surrounding individuals who are within the sensory range of recording devices may not be aware that they are being recorded, or if they are aware, may not give permission to be involved. Privacy as well as anonymity cannot be guaranteed in these settings.
Protecting the “vulnerable”?
While it may be a popular belief among older individuals to assume younger individuals are not capable of navigating the world on their own with the lnternet’s looming threat, Williams (2018) ponders a potential underlying issue “What if the main problem for the next generation is not how to handle new technology but how to watch us not handling it and not hate us?” Arkangel shows how an audience initially sympathizes for one character, but as the story processes and the character turns into a dominating person of authority, the audience’s perception of who is the story’s protagonist transforms as well. It is most likely no longer the parent, seeking control to ease anxieties about their offspring’s well-being, who earns the audience’s sympathy; instead, it is the imprisoned individual who tries to break free from the person of authority.
Even before the world seemingly went online, parents were advertised parental control over the entertainment their children consumed such as “Explicit Content” labels on music CDs. Introduced in 1985 by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA), these stickers warned of content that may be deemed as strong language, or depictions of violence, sex, or substance abuse. However, putting the notorious “Parental Advisory” sticker on a record is voluntary (Cole, 2010), at the discretion of the music label. Yet, one may infer that these companies opt to add the sticker to add hype and entice younger audience to consume an entity that is deemed “forbidden fruit,” rather than an altruistic concern for consumers’ well-being.
Cautionary Tales
Arkangel and other Black Mirror episodes may cause audience members to reflect, evaluate, and evoke intention to change certain technology habits, Nissenbaum cautions “what people do counts more than what they say” (2009, p. 105). In real-life, as technology continues to advance and automated digital surveillance is commonplace, not only should regulations be implemented and oversight formed to protect consumers from dubious data use, but also, as consumers, we must be cautious of the conveniences provided by digital services.
References
Brooker, C. (Writer), & Pankiw, A. (Director). (2023, June 15). Joan is Awful (Season 6, Episode 1) [TV series episode]. In C. Brooker, A. Jones, J. Rhoades, B. K. Ali, C. Selby, G. Hofmeyr, & D. Pedregosa (Executive Producers), Black Mirror, Broke & Bones; Netflix.
Brooker, C. (Writer), & Foster, J. (Director). (2017, December 29). Arkangel (Season 4, Episode 2) [TV series episode]. In C. Brooker, & A. Jones, (Executive Producers), Black Mirror, Zeppotron; Netflix.
Cole, T. (2010, October 29). You Ask, We Answer: 'Parental Advisory' Labels — The Criteria And The History. National Public Radio: The Record. https://www.npr.org/sections/therecord/2010/10/29/130905176/you-ask-we-answer-parental-advisory---why-when-how
Framke, C. (2017, December 29). Black Mirror’s “Arkangel” takes parental surveillance to its darkest, most obvious extreme. Vox. https://www.vox.com/culture/2017/12/29/16791518/black-mirror-arkangel-recap-season-4-review
Giffin, A. (2024, October 30). #3, Engage: Week 2.
Hobbs, M. (2024, November 8). #3, Engage: Week 2.
Nelson, M. K. (2010). Parenting out of control: anxious parents in uncertain times. New York University Press.
Neman, M. (2024, October 30). #3, Engage: Week 2.