Google Street View: Public Outcry Valid but Misdirected

Abstract

“...fear founded on mere possibility is less helpful than wariness grounded in understanding.” (Monmonier 2002: 2) Emergent technologies which manifest and are popularized by surveillance practices are often promoted in ways that betray biases, conspiracy, or determinism. These approaches do nothing to further an academic examination of such innovations and as such, only serve to perpetuate fear. There is an undeniable technological trend towards digitization and cartography is no exception: Google Street View illustrates this change. Predicting the success or failure of particular products and trends is irrelevant. However, tracking the sociological progress of these technologies permits an invaluable insight into the workings of our social world. These technologies alter our understanding of maps, changing the conditions of our experience from static knowledge to electronic dynamism. In my examination of the mapping tool, I attempt to deconstruct popular (mis)conceptions/perceptions surrounding the application, arguing that the media habitually approaches the application with a lens that either trivializes or sensationalizes its properties and usages. As a corollary of this, mass media tends to provide blanket coverage on fashionable topics, while simultaneously avoiding the examination of potentially more questionable social and political implications.