Everyday Surveillance: Vigilance and Visibility in Postmodern Life

By William G. Staples

Book Overview

When we think of surveillance in our society, we usually imagine "Big Brother" scenarios with the government tracking our every move. The actual surveillance of our everyday lives is much more subtle, however, and may be more insidious. William G. Staples shows how our lives are tracked by both public and private organizations--sometimes with our consent, and sometimes without--through our internet use, cell phones, public video cameras, credit cards, license plates, shopping habits, and more. Everyday Surveillance is a provocative exploration of the myriad ways we are watched each day, and how this surveillance shapes our lives.

Thoroughly revised, the second edition considers new topics, such as the rise of social media, and updates research throughout. Everyday Surveillance introduces students to concepts of social control and incites classroom discussion about how surveillance impacts the ways we understand people and our lives at home, work, school, or in the community.

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 074254110X
• ISBN13: 9780742541108
• Release Date: October 2013
• Publisher: Bloomsbury Publishing Plc
• Length: 269 Pages
• Weight: 0.80 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.6" x 6.0" x 9.0"
• Age Range: 18 years and up
• Grade Range: Postsecondary

Customer Reviews

A worthwhile and englightening read

Though you may not like what you find out. Staples manages to weave sociological theory effortlessly through this engaging book, which details our surveillance culture. His analysis is clear, thoughtful, and full of examples from each of our every-day lives. His ideas have a solid theoretical grounding, but offer an original assessment of what is actually behind all those cameras, all-to-frequent drug tests, rising prison populations and the knowledge that someone is always watching us. Without paranoia or exaggeration, Staples evokes perfectly the surveillance situation in which we are living, explaining how it came about, what it really does for (and to) us, and what's likely to happen in the future.