Re: Black Mirror
Posted: Fri Feb 16, 2018 2:12 am
After thoroughly enjoying this last season, I can't help but feel wary of the whole "deepfake" program thing that someone used to map Nicholas Cage's face on to a video of someone else (and yes, I know there's a much naughtier aspect to how the program is being used).
It really bothers me how un-serious most people seem to be taking this. It's not the same as photoshopping an image or writing a fictitious story. Videos are the closest thing to firsthand experience that currently exists in our world, and if it isn't clearly fake... Most people will readily accept what they see as being (or having been) real.
It might be funny to imagine some hilariously degrading video of a politician or a celebrity, but that's not what I imagine. I see this as a weapon. I imagine innocent people going to prison on account of fake video evidence and a biased court. I imagine myself or a family member getting blackmailed with a fake (but nonetheless embarrassing) video. This is no longer the same kind of "satire" as illustrated caricatures or even internet memes. This is tampering with our perception of reality, and as time goes on it's only going to get harder to discern reality from falsehoods.
This might step on toes, but I think we should own the rights to our own likenesses (representation in a lifelike video form) and have some form of legal protection from this. There's a clear line between fair use and abuse, and that line needs to be drawn in legal form soon.
It really bothers me how un-serious most people seem to be taking this. It's not the same as photoshopping an image or writing a fictitious story. Videos are the closest thing to firsthand experience that currently exists in our world, and if it isn't clearly fake... Most people will readily accept what they see as being (or having been) real.
It might be funny to imagine some hilariously degrading video of a politician or a celebrity, but that's not what I imagine. I see this as a weapon. I imagine innocent people going to prison on account of fake video evidence and a biased court. I imagine myself or a family member getting blackmailed with a fake (but nonetheless embarrassing) video. This is no longer the same kind of "satire" as illustrated caricatures or even internet memes. This is tampering with our perception of reality, and as time goes on it's only going to get harder to discern reality from falsehoods.
This might step on toes, but I think we should own the rights to our own likenesses (representation in a lifelike video form) and have some form of legal protection from this. There's a clear line between fair use and abuse, and that line needs to be drawn in legal form soon.