Running Head: MASS MEDIA SURVEILLANCE

Mass Media Surveillance

Tahjee Fleming-Robinson

Essex County College

Word Count = 1,887

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Table of Contents

Introduction 3

Movie Review 3

The objective of the movie 5

Application of the law and views of the court 6

National Security threat 7

Solutions to ensure security 8

Conclusion 8

References 10
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Mass Media Surveillance

Introduction

The world is quickly becoming a hostile place to live under the influence of mass media

surveillance because of the variety of rapid technological advancements. It is of significance to

acknowledge that media war via the internet and global communications systems is heading

towards the next level after getting maturity in informational technologies. According to

Lashmar (2017), the world is transforming into bits and bytes because of the prevalence of

information in complicated dynamics. Olive Stone wanted to highlight this threat to the world

because of these advanced surveillance technologies. The true story of Edward Snowden inspired

him to elaborate his case in front of the world so that people can understand that their data is not

protected and they are in constant monitoring of intelligent surveillance (Murata et al., 2017).

The National Security Agency (NSA) of the USA controls the world's security paradigm by

monitoring every cell phone or other electronic gadget spread across the globe (Chavalarias,

2016). This compelled me to share my experience about the movie's outcomes and Snowden's

real courage for spreading awareness of the dark world of the NSA and CIA. This was regarded

as the biggest breakthrough in the spy world because, for the first time, the world came to know

how influential the USA is in monitoring the world's data. I am compelled to think about my

safety and freedom after watching this movie. I feel that I am in a constant monitoring process

that can undermine my right to live anytime. It is crucial for the world to follow the Snowden

suit and compel tech companies to elaborate their position about protecting data.
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Movie Review

Edward Snowden (Joseph Gordon-Levitt) - after witnessing the unauthorized and

unethical action in the NSA - decided to whistleblow on the U.S. Government so that people can

be aware of its spying culture. Snowden's life transformed from the U.S. Army personnel to the

CIA technology specialist and finally ended as the NSA sub-contractor (Galli, 2019). The cyber

counterintelligence engagements on the illegal assignments caused problems in his cognitive

abilities, and it is shown from his problematic relationship with his girlfriend, Lindsay Mills. The

prevalence of the USA's mass media surveillance causes a real disturbance in Snowden's

thinking capabilities.

Snowden's movie dramatizes the actual incidences that Edward Snowden goes through in

his real life. However, certain movie plots might be included for entertainment purposes to grab

the viewers' attention. The real message to be found in the movie is the fight between Snowden's

cognitive abilities that compelled him to stand for the affairs that did not suit the professional

code of conduct. It perceived that this movie was the fight against the corrupt government but in

the technical sphere. It was interesting to find out that the prevalence of the modern battlefield is

everywhere. The role of Gordon-Levitt's voice in the movie makes it a perfect suite for the spy

movie genre while also providing a clear view of the real Snowden who is dealt with the CIA's

operations (Lashmar, 2018).

The pinching line such as "You'd think intelligence would count for something in the

intelligence business" elaborates the intelligence agencies' interests in meddling in international

political cyberspace. The actions and conversational dialogues are considered to be the great

achievement of Oliver Stone with this real-life event featuring Snowden's life in cyberspace. I

believe that the ending of such a movie features the whistle-blower against the most powerful
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country with a happy ending. The same is the fate decided with this movie that instigates

controversy in society (Adams et al., 2017).

The objective of the movie

The movie's objective is to highlight the emergence of the fifth and sixth-generation

warfare that is rapidly bearing down on the populace. The technological advancement in

information warfare is pouring tremendous pressure on personal data's privacy and

confidentiality. We live in a world of bits and bytes that convert everything in the form of pre-

designed algorithms (Mahmoud and Zeki, 2016). The key example of this can be understood

from the digital media marketing techniques that target the computerized world's relevant

audience to conduct business activities. The theme of this movie is the destruction of the moral

and ethical values that propagate freedom in society. Snowden highlighted the digital prison's

exact version, where everyone and everything is monitored, showing that media warfare through

constant monitoring of the individuals that can be manipulated easily (Adams et al., 2017). The

definition of emotional behaviors is on the verge of devastation because of the prevalence of

cyber techniques in society. Snowden provides a little overview of the cyber world's happenings;

what beneath the carpet is still unknown to the world.

The USA being the superpower, wanted to retain its supremacy over the dynamics of the

world. I believe that it started the new era by meddling in many countries' internal affairs and

monitoring prominent world leaders to enhance its operations' effectiveness. It is impossible to

live without the interaction of individuals with digital technologies (Mols and Janssen, 2017).

The data can be monitored or viewed even from the closed cams of laptops or other gadgets. The

world is becoming a digital prison where big power such as the USA can affect individuals'

mental capabilities without even noticing. I assess that Snowden's actions pour tremendous
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impacts on society's social and economic projections by introducing the world to the cyber spy

world's dark realities.

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Application of the law and views of the court

Currently, Snowden has not been presented before the court to allow the judges to make

rulings on the charges pressed against him. This suggests that there are no existing case laws that

pertain to the U.S. government vs. Snowden. However, there are several cases that are similar to

what Snowden is facing and the views given by the judges are being used to debate about the

possible fate for Snowden. For example, the case of Klayman v. Obama involved the same issue

of collection of metadata and similar stakeholders, including the NSA and the public (Nakashima

& Marimow, 2013). From the views of the courts, the idea of gathering telephone metadata is

unconstitutional. The ruling was made in the wake of the leaks made by Snowden. This decision

has been used to argue that it vindicated Snowden since the underlying issues in the two cases

are the same.

The main law applied in the case is Section 215 of the Patriot Act, where it was held that

the legislation does not authorize the NSA to embark on the collection of bulk of telephone call

records. This section allows the government to gather tangible items (such as books, documents,

and records) when it is believed that they can provide evidence against a foreigner (Mann, 2014).

This suggests that the law applied in the case does not support the gathering of telephone call

records from the members of the public. The same view was supported by two different courts,

including the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia in the Klayman v. Obama and the

U.S. Court of Appeal for the Second Circuit in the ACLU v. Clapper case. Judges in both courts

favored Snowden’s line of thought and the possible defense, in case he is taken to court.
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National Security threat

Snowden’s leaks could not affect national security directly. Individuals who claim that

the documents threatened the security rely on the wrong assumption that he took millions of

documents and then dumped them online. However, there is sufficient evidence to show that

Snowden released zero documents (Timm, 2016). On the contrary, he asked for the help of

experienced journalists with the knowledge of national security to review each document and

release those that were in the public interest only. Timm (2016) held that the national security

reporters working with the news outlets that were respected were given the documents.

It was estimated that Snowden was able to copy more than 1.5 million documents (Timm,

2016), but only 200,000 of them were released (Hosenball, 2013). These statistics show that only

a small percentage of the documents in the hands of Snowden reached the public. Documents

that had the potential to threaten national security were concealed. More importantly, there are

reports showing that the journalists consulted by Snowden allowed the government to make

objections to the leaking of files based on the security concerns (Timm, 2016). The effectiveness

of the measures taken to select the documents that could be released is based on the fact that

there are no significant security incidents that can be directly linked to the leaked information.

Solutions to ensure security

The USA's leaked documents by Snowden are compelling other world powers to prepare

themselves against the USA's rhetoric approach in the cyber world. Countries like China, Russia,

and Britain are enhancing the cyber world's barriers to protect their data from the USA's

domination of the world's cyberspace. The ongoing tussle between the world powers is already

witnessed from the USA's allegations on Chinese companies such as Huawei and TikTok for

breaching privacy protocols to threaten the USA's national security (Marthews and Tucker,
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2017). After watching this movie, it is easy to wonder why the USA would object to monitoring

its data by other countries when it was the sole proprietor for initiating the world's cyberwar.

Citizens need to recommend that strict laws be implemented for tech companies regarding

protecting their personal data in the world's hostile dynamics.

It is clear to see that Mass Media Surveillance is pouring disturbing impacts on the

operational growth of the world's dimensions. The tussle between the world powers is making

the circumstances worse than is expected. One suggestion is minimizing the interaction with tech

gadgets and using apps that show compliance with ethical and legal considerations in cyberspace

(Dimitrova and Brkan, 2018). This might reduce the security concerns, but the solution to living

in complete isolation in remote locations such as Siberia or Antarctica is where interaction with

the tech gadgets cannot be possible. They are much too ingrained in the modern world.

Conclusion

In conclusion, my experience of watching Snowden was constructive to understanding

the prevalence of security threats in cyberspace. This movie by Olive Stone contributes greatly to

understanding the cyber warfare projections that are haunting the world's interests and

sustainability. The actions and dialogues in the movies give proximity to the real incidents that

happened to Snowden's real character. This movie provides me a piece of evidence regarding the

trap of the tech companies in our surroundings. There is no way out unless the appropriate

measures can be taken to reduce the intelligence meddling in people's common interests across

the globe. I get a sense of insecurity from the tech gadgets that I own. I believe that every

individual in this world is getting the same sense of insecurity from tech companies. The ongoing

tussle between the world powers such as the USA, Russia, and China leads to devastating

outcomes. Snowden's courage might be the wake-up call for the world's residents to compel
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governments in their capacity to minimize the threats of the cyberwar in the world. The movie

played an important role in highlighting different aspects of the controversial spectrum of data

handling and protection (Edgar, 2017). The world leaders need to take steps to prevail over the

real essence of freedom and liberty.

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References

Gray, Phillip W. 2013. “Leaderless Resistance, Networked Organization, and Ideological

Hegemony.” Terrorism and Political Violence 25(5):655-671.

Adams, A. A., Yáñez-Luna, J. C., Ramírez, P. I. G., Arias-Oliva, M., & Murata, K. 2017. "The

social impact of Snowden's revelations on Mexican youngsters". Journal of Information,

Communication and Ethics in Society.

Adams, A. A., Murata, K., Fukuta, Y., Orito, Y., & Lara Palma, A. M. 2017. "Following

Snowden Around the World: International Comparison of Attitudes to Snowden's

Revelations about the NSA/GCHQ". Journal of Information, Communication and Ethics

in Society, 15(3).

Chavalarias, D. 2016. "The unlikely encounter between von Foerster and Snowden: When

second-order cybernetics sheds light on societal impacts of Big Data". Big Data &

Society, 3(1), 2053951715621086.

Dimitrova, A., & Brkan, M. 2018. "Balancing National Security and Data Protection: The Role

of E.U. and US Policy‐Makers and Courts before and after the NSA Affair". JCMS:

Journal of Common Market Studies, 56(4), 751-767.

Edgar, T. H. 2017. "Beyond snowden: privacy, mass surveillance, and the struggle to reform the

NSA". Brookings Institution Press.

Galli, B. J. 2019. "Effects on Current Day Technology, Legislation with Respect to Ethical

Valuation: A Look at Edward Snowden's Impact". International Journal of Responsible

Leadership and Ethical Decision-Making (IJRLEDM), 1(1), 1-12.

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Lashmar, P. 2018. "Journalistic freedom and the surveillance of journalists post-Snowden".

Lashmar, P. 2017. "No more sources? The impact of Snowden's revelations on journalists and

their confidential sources". Journalism Practice, 11(6), 665-688.

Murata, K., Adams, A. A., & Palma, A. M. L. 2017. "Following Snowden: a cross-cultural study

on the social impact of Snowden's revelations". Journal of Information, Communication

and Ethics in Society.

Mahmoud, F. Z. M., & Zeki, A. M. 2016. "EDWARD SNOWDEN DISCLOSURES TURN

THE FEARS OF SURVEILLANCE INTO REALITY: THE IMPACT AND

TRANSFORMATION IN INFORMATION SECURITY". Journal of Theoretical &

Applied Information Technology, 83(2).

Mann, F. (2014). Fact sheet: Section 215 of the USA Patriot Act. Retrieved from

https://www.csis.org/analysis/fact-sheet-section-215-usa-patriot-act Hosenball, M.

(2013). NSA chief says Snowden leaked up to 200,000 secret documents. Retrieved from

https://www.reuters.com/article/us-usa-security-nsa/nsa-chief-says-snowden-leaked-up-

to-200000-secret-documents-idUSBRE9AD19B20131114

Marthews, A., & Tucker, C. E. 2017. "The Impact of Online Surveillance on

Behavior". Cambridge Handbook of Surveillance Law.

Mols, A., & Janssen, S. 2017. "Not interesting enough to be followed by the NSA: An analysis

of Dutch privacy attitudes". Digital journalism, 5(3), 277-298.

Nakashima, E. & Marimow, E. (2013). Judge: NSA’s collecting of phone records is probably

unconstitutional. Retrieved from https://www.washingtonpost.com/national/judge-nsas-

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collecting-of-phone-records-is-likely-unconstitutional/2013/12/16/6e098eda-6688-11e3-

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Timm, T. (2016). The Washington Post is wrong: Edward Snowden should be pardoned.

Retrieved from https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2016/sep/19/washington-

post-wrong-edward-snowden-pardon
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