America’s most popular progressive radio host and New York Times
bestselling author Thom Hartmann reveals how the government and
corporate America misuse our personal data and shows how we can reclaim
our privacy.Most Americans are worried about how
companies like Facebook invade their privacy and harvest their data, but
many people don’t fully understand the details of how their information
is being adapted and misused. In this thought-provoking and accessible
book, Thom Hartmann reveals exactly how the government and corporations
are tracking our every online move and using our data to buy elections,
employ social control, and monetize our lives.
Hartmann uses
extensive, vivid examples to highlight the consequences of Big Data on
all aspects of our lives. He traces the history of surveillance and
social control, looking back to how Big Brother invented whiteness to
keep order and how surveillance began to be employed as a way to modify
behavior. As he states, “The goal of those who violate privacy and use
surveillance is almost always social control and behavior modification.”
Along
with covering the history, Hartmann shows how we got to where we are
today, how China—with its new Social Credit System—serves as a warning,
and how we can and must avoid a similarly dystopian future. By delving
into the Constitutional right to privacy, Hartmann reminds us of our
civil right and shows how we can restore it.
“From the Bush years to the present, Thom Hartmann has been one of very few voices constantly willing to tell the truth.” —Bill McKibben, author of Falter
SOLUTION-ORIENTED: Hartmann doesn’t just describe the issue and
place it in historical context, he provides a tangible call to action
and shows what needs to be done.
