The SXSW Festival in Austin Texas is a huge affair. This year - it's running right now - it has 72,000 attendees on the books - that doesn't even begin to count blow-ins. Its events have become the leading edge in technology innovation, music, film, advertising, marketing, and generally making deals.
A crowd of 2000 packed in to see Saturday's keynote speaker and burst into cheers and applause for - Julian Assange. Not in person, of course, he's still in the Ecuadorian embassy in London, but by video link. He talked and answered questions for an hour, with an eager audience.
Wait a minute, you think, isn't he supposed to be a spy, hunted by a score of governments, denounced by the United States? Why are they cheering? There was more excitement a couple of days later when the speaker was Edward Snowden, calling from Moscow. He of course is the other big whistle blower, on the run.
They were cheered because governments and authorities work so hard at keeping secrets from the public. Too often the only way to find the truth is through the blast of a loud whistle. Look at the Trans-Pacific Partnership trade agreement, which we have only read because of Wikileaks.
As marketers, surely we know by now that there are no more secrets. So much of what we do trades on data. Media selection has become a highly-programmed dissection of information gathered from check-outs and mail order, viewing patterns and even political preferences.
"The ability to surveil everyone on the planet is almost there and, arguably, will be there in the next couple of years," said Assange in his talk. And it's not just governments - he also pointed to giants like Google and Facebook who harvest vast amounts of knowledge and sell it for great profit.
Have you ever noticed how when you download your new mobile phone app, you tick a little declaration that virtually says, "Anything you learn about me through this program you can use any way you like"?
It's nearly 30 years since a great controversy blew up when Bob Hawke wanted to introduce the Australia Card, a kind of tax office ID with people's tax file number on it.
I couldn't see much reason for objections - check your driving licence and you'll see name, address, age and date of birth, photo, physical disabilities, demerit points - I didn't see the tax file number would make much difference. But it was a big issue, still is.
Yet Snowden tells us they have been collecting all our phone information, too. If the calls are all as boring as the ones I overhear in the tram and the street, I pity the poor blighter who has to listen to them.
But let's face it, in this technological age there are no secrets any more. "They" know all about "us", and thanks to our leakers we now know a bit more about them.
From the marketing perspective, we learn ever more about our audiences. Technology - the kind they promote at SXSW - can even tell whether your eyes are following the TV commercial, or grandad's gone to sleep again.
As for Assange, Snowden, Manning and a guaranteed flow of others to follow, it does not matter if you like them or not, they are just the tools of this information age. The guys who reached out and turned on the taps.
But the information was always there. More is collected every minute as you read this and no amount of breast beating and law enforcement is going to change it. Go and ask the crowds at SXSW.
1 comment:
Good article Ray.
Cheers Chris
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