Last month, Wired Magazine writer Evan Ratliff took part in a social experiment; he would try to change his identity, go on the run, and avoid detection. The prize was $5,000 to anyone who could track him down. Evan had one month to avoid being caught.
The details of this experiment/contest made me think even more about Lisa’s commentary on our personal privacy in the age of Twitter and Facebook.
Those willing to accept the challenge of finding the missing writer, immediately formed hunting parties. What transpired was NOT a Rat Race-style romp across the country where loosely formed groups of eccentric characters chased down the wily Wired author for the prize money. These hunters were professionals who pursued the missing writer in their spare time. I was impressed by the speed at which the hunters were able to organize, communicate and collaborate. Twitter pages and #FindEvan hashtags materialized immediately, Facebook pages, secure chat-rooms and legal internet sleuthing became the bloodhounds and trackers chasing a man on the run.
Keep in mind the hunted had done his research on how to disappear. He used physical and electronic misdirection, disguises, fake names, paid in cash or gift cards and even traveled as a roadie with a band.
He was eventually caught.
This is our world now that we have opened a portion of our lives to the web. This is also exemplifies how collaboration and mobilization, that once took months, can happen in hours or days. Big Brother, the government version, isn’t paying attention anymore, but citizens are all paying attention to each other.
I don’t think we need to worry about the totalitarian Big Brother at the moment, because the eyes that judge us and comment on our behavior is ubiquitous. Big Brother is your actual big brother or sister, it is your friends or the stranger who flames you on your blog. Our dialogue and voyeurism is generally a self-policing and light-hearted affair. However, the story of the vanishing Wired writer is an example of how quickly a “community” can use available 2.0 tools to hunt you down no matter where you hide.
My recommendation to anyone looking to hide in plain sight is to un-plug, learn to grow a chin beard, and build barns. Big Brother looks less like the grainy image of a big floating head and more like the redhead from Wedding Crashers that says, “If you leave…I’ll find you, hahahahahahah.”
The details of this experiment/contest made me think even more about Lisa’s commentary on our personal privacy in the age of Twitter and Facebook.
Those willing to accept the challenge of finding the missing writer, immediately formed hunting parties. What transpired was NOT a Rat Race-style romp across the country where loosely formed groups of eccentric characters chased down the wily Wired author for the prize money. These hunters were professionals who pursued the missing writer in their spare time. I was impressed by the speed at which the hunters were able to organize, communicate and collaborate. Twitter pages and #FindEvan hashtags materialized immediately, Facebook pages, secure chat-rooms and legal internet sleuthing became the bloodhounds and trackers chasing a man on the run.
Keep in mind the hunted had done his research on how to disappear. He used physical and electronic misdirection, disguises, fake names, paid in cash or gift cards and even traveled as a roadie with a band.
He was eventually caught.
This is our world now that we have opened a portion of our lives to the web. This is also exemplifies how collaboration and mobilization, that once took months, can happen in hours or days. Big Brother, the government version, isn’t paying attention anymore, but citizens are all paying attention to each other.
I don’t think we need to worry about the totalitarian Big Brother at the moment, because the eyes that judge us and comment on our behavior is ubiquitous. Big Brother is your actual big brother or sister, it is your friends or the stranger who flames you on your blog. Our dialogue and voyeurism is generally a self-policing and light-hearted affair. However, the story of the vanishing Wired writer is an example of how quickly a “community” can use available 2.0 tools to hunt you down no matter where you hide.
My recommendation to anyone looking to hide in plain sight is to un-plug, learn to grow a chin beard, and build barns. Big Brother looks less like the grainy image of a big floating head and more like the redhead from Wedding Crashers that says, “If you leave…I’ll find you, hahahahahahah.”
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