WALTER BENJAMIN ON THE RIGHT TO BE REPRODUCED: HUMAN EMPOWERMENT THROUGH VIDEO TECHNOLOGY

Authors

  • Yi Jiang
  • John T. Giordano Assumption University

Abstract

This paper will examine how the power of filming
technology – connected the development of the smartphone
– leads to a process of democratization that brings
increasing control of information, images, and events to
the individual person. Filming loses its elite quality and is
brought down to the level of the masses. Gradually people
are empowered to both film and to be filmed. This right
is important for human development in a technological
world which involves the ability to participate in media
technology and not to be overpowered or controlled by
it. It will demonstrate this through a reading of Walter
Benjamin’s ideas concerning the technologies of film
in the age of mechanical reproduction. It will apply
Benjamin’s ideas to the current situation where news and
social media such as TikTok which are increasingly shaped
by the contributions of individuals. It will also show the
negative implications, and will conclude that the human
empowerment that accompanies video technologies needs
to be accompanied by the cultivation of trust.

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Published

2023-04-12

Issue

Vol. 24 No. 1 (2023): January to June 2023

Section

Articles

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