News and commentary about the intersection of information technology, politics, and policy presented by the members of Digital Politics, a course at Hamilton College.
This advertisement is deliberately ambiguous. What “poor decisions” and “questionable material” does this software target? A student’s harshly opinionated blog or his/her pictures from a night of drunken debauchery?
I’m not sympathizing with students who are irresponsible about what they post online, but there is something a bit unnerving about this product, especially because it is so vague about what exactly the software looks for.
I’m not crazy, and I don’t fear or fret that Big Brother is watching –even if he is. But this software, YOUDiligence, is bothersome to me. It claims to be developed with the best interest of the institution in mind and has a total disregard for the students whose lives it could potentially crush. It is also unfortunate that athletes have been pinpointed; I suppose they are just the easiest targets.
Furthermore, the tagline for the product is “Let Coaches Coach, Let YOUDiligence identify potential issues before they become problems.” I can’t think of a worse selling point; as a student-athlete all my life, I’ve often turned to coaches for help on and off the field. This horribly impersonal product aims to destroy this valuable bond. The camaraderie amongst players and coaches is one of the special ties that helps to distinguish amateur sports from professional ones.
Technological advancement has intensified our innate desire to be in-the-know, and though perhaps not all that apparent, voyeurism (a term I hope I’m not using too lightly) has become a pressing issue. Sexual connotations aside, voyeurism is a provocative term that stirs on various levels –whether in regards to wire tapping of supposed terrorists or merely monitoring a student-athlete’s facebook account.
On another note, I’m curious about how this kind of software works. Dave, perhaps you know?
1 comment:
This advertisement is deliberately ambiguous. What “poor decisions” and “questionable material” does this software target? A student’s harshly opinionated blog or his/her pictures from a night of drunken debauchery?
I’m not sympathizing with students who are irresponsible about what they post online, but there is something a bit unnerving about this product, especially because it is so vague about what exactly the software looks for.
I’m not crazy, and I don’t fear or fret that Big Brother is watching –even if he is. But this software, YOUDiligence, is bothersome to me. It claims to be developed with the best interest of the institution in mind and has a total disregard for the students whose lives it could potentially crush. It is also unfortunate that athletes have been pinpointed; I suppose they are just the easiest targets.
Furthermore, the tagline for the product is “Let Coaches Coach, Let YOUDiligence identify potential issues before they become problems.” I can’t think of a worse selling point; as a student-athlete all my life, I’ve often turned to coaches for help on and off the field. This horribly impersonal product aims to destroy this valuable bond. The camaraderie amongst players and coaches is one of the special ties that helps to distinguish amateur sports from professional ones.
Technological advancement has intensified our innate desire to be in-the-know, and though perhaps not all that apparent, voyeurism (a term I hope I’m not using too lightly) has become a pressing issue. Sexual connotations aside, voyeurism is a provocative term that stirs on various levels –whether in regards to wire tapping of supposed terrorists or merely monitoring a student-athlete’s facebook account.
On another note, I’m curious about how this kind of software works. Dave, perhaps you know?
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