No.9: CONSPICUOUS CURATION: THE PANOPTICON OF TASTE
Why does everything we know and love have to be shared with the world?
One theory of ours is that contemporary digital life has created a sort of "panopticon of taste", in which we are all fairly willing captives.
At every turn — in a 360 degrees circle, to be true to the metaphor — we're encouraged to constantly share the newest find while others watch and judge, typically from great virtual distance.
We have a view into all of the activities and interests of all of those we "follow", and if internet protocol is correctly adhered to, they also see us.
If the second half of the twentieth century was the era of "conspicuous consumption", we have surely entered a new era, one of "conspicuous curation".
Today, it's less about what you own and more about who you follow, where you go, and what you know.
There are two main reasons for this.
