Public and Private Spheres in the Internet Age

Branching off from Ally's post about mass surveillance and Chloe's on the idea of living in truth, I was thinking about how these discussions are in some ways different in the context of the present day with the rise of the Internet and social media. With these new technologies, I think in some ways the public sphere is encroaching upon the private one now more than ever. We are all constantly connected to our social circles and even when you are alone on the internet, you are still being monitored, so we have less and less time that is truly private. I spend a considerable amount of time "alone" on my computer, but even at those times I am constantly interacting with people and being tracked by sites. Even if time on the internet can feel private, knowing that your actions are being monitored can influence your actions or even, on some level, how you think.

Similarly, with new social media and other technologies that allows us to remain connected to other people, we have less and less time to be truly alone and outside of our social circle. Constantly documenting our lives on social media exposes us to the gaze of everyone who has access to our accounts. I doubt that many would feel that they are "living in truth" on their Instagram accounts, where people post for audiences of hundreds of people they may hardly know. If we accept Sabina's view that we cannot "live in truth" while outside of our private sphere, I think it's important to consider how the rise of the Internet and social media potentially encroaches on this private sphere in a detrimental way.