Reading Response: “The Anxieties of Big Data” by Kate Crawford
The rise of Big Data, which refers to large and complex data sets, is something that is often taken for granted in our current society. However, in order to retain a critical perspective, it is necessary to understand the ways in which Big Data impact our lives in both broad terms and individual terms. In “The Anxieties of Big Data”, writer Kate Crawford accomplishes this by honing in on the psychological effects of Big Data. She starts by posing the seemingly simple question “what does the lived reality of big data feel like?” and her contemplation of this question touches on
I cannot even keep count of how many people I know with diagnosed anxiety, and I also know so many people who experience anxiety on a smaller scale regularly. Crawford quotes Plan C which argued that “anxiety is the dominant affect of our current phase of capitalism, engendering political hopelessness, insecurity, and social separation.” In many ways, Big Data coincides with these causes, as the power relations involved in Big Data in many ways echo the power relations in our capitalistic society at large.
The first topic that Crawford mentions which illustrates this statement is surveillent anxiety, which is the anxiety of both those surveilled and the surveillers. Crawford writes that there exists an “enormous structural power asymmetry” between the two aforementioned parties. The surveillers have the upper hand in the relationship, as the surveilled are often left voiceless and have little say over when/if they are surveilled and how their data gets used. This is reminiscent of hierarchical power relations in society. Those at the bottom of the hierarchy are marginalized and overlooked, yet those with money and power seem to have unlimited freedom. However, Crawford raises an interesting counterpoint when she writes that neither party is “free from being haunted” by data anxiety. Data anxiety does not only arise from feeling like there is too much information, but can also arise when one feels a sense of incompletion in the midst of overwhelming amounts of data.
Another interesting point addressed by Crawford is normcore, referring to how youth in particular are finding freedom with being nothing special. She mentions that this become cool when big data rendered blending in impossible, yet I argue that in reality, normcore is perhaps a consequence of big data. Though widespread surveillance seems to make everyone stand out, I wonder if, in the huge amounts of data collected, we really are as unique as we think. Even just scrolling through my newsfeed every day, I start to feel like everything blends together. People tend to post the same types of things and maintain the same types of online personas. And while perhaps it sometimes it is to be “cool” as Crawford asserts, I believe is reductive. Rather, in a time of so much information overload and anxiety, humans find safety in sameness and familiarity. The internet has so much potential and can be used in so many creative ways, but for the most part, people are using it in the exact same ways. We like to have things simplified, tangible, and understandable. Perhaps it’s human nature, or perhaps it’s a defensive mechanism. Either way, I do see striking parallels between this trend of blending in online and in society at large.
Online, we create networks around our online personas which oftentimes solely consist of people we agree with. When someone deviates from the normcore, we attack them. For example, there have been many occurrences when someone tweeted something that they probably shouldn’t have tweeted. Rather than starting a conversation and trying to understanding each other, other internet users often will separate themselves from the culprit by blocking/unfollowing, and in extreme cases the remark will explode and become viral, sometimes costing people their jobs and livelihood. While I do believe that people must be held accountable for any racist, sexist, homophobic, etc., remark they say, I do think that technology aids us in creating a normcore online, where we otherize people who we do not agree with or simply those who differ from this. This process of otherization is very relevant to current societal struggles, as we have a president who openly spews hateful language about anyone who doesn’t fit his mold of a model American. I think we are all guilty of normcore — of creating an us vs. them mindset either knowingly or unknowingly at some point during our lives. And just as marginalized communities are the ones targeted for otherization and xenophobia in society, they are the ones, as Crawford states, who feel the greatest impact of data tracking. It is necessary for us to critically examine our online presence and understand the ways in which we fall into the same hegemonic power relations pervasive in society. I believe that because of the open, creative, and collaborative nature of the internet, there is so much potential for positive change.
