Sensitive Data - The Art of Surveillance

Kunst der Überwachung © Bennet Perez ©  © Bennet Perez Grafik_Kunst der Überwachung © Bennet Perez

Symposium

January 20-22, 2017
Venue: Münchner Kammerspiele

Since Edward Snowden blew the whistle that awakened the world to the magnitude of surveillance, has anything changed? Most people surf the web without protecting their profiles and do not have time to read through reams of terms and conditions before passing on their data to third parties. And in the hubbub of Internet traffic, intelligence agencies run the risk of missing the whisperings of real bombmakers. Much has stayed the same. Bestsellers advise people to be cautious in the digital world; the Black Lives Matter movement uses CCTV cameras as a defence against police violence; and in India, the government has resisted a social network. In Germany, in the meantime, a discussion has sprung up about the role of the secret service. And in the wake of the US presidential election, there has been a wide-ranging debate over the role of leaked emails. In the swirling vortex of the present, this international conference, curated by Tobi Müller and Sarah Harrison (Wikileaks), sheds light on the history of privacy and public life. Before complaining about those who strip off on the Internet, the desire of being seen should not be repressed. Because one thing is certain: Someone is always watching us. Perhaps it’s you?

Sensitive Data - The Art of Surveillance is part of Sensitive Data, a long-term international project by the Goethe-Institut in cooperation with Germany’s Federal Agency for Civic Education, Münchner Kammerspiele, and Bard College.

Audio and Video Recordings at the Symposium

Bots, Fake News und Big Data: Das Ende der Demokratie? © Bundeszentrale für politische Bildung

Bots, Fake News and Big Data: The End of Democracy? (in German)

Opinions vary widely as to the influence of bots, fake news and big data on elections, public opinion, and democracy. Yvonne Hofstetter owns a big data company and is concerned about both external influences and surveillance.

10 Years of Wikileaks © bpb

10 Years of Wikileaks: Transparency Under Attack (in German)

To some, Julian Assange, the founder of WikiLeaks, is a hero. WikiLeaks has been criticized, however, for the role it played during the US presidential election. What is more important - the truth of the documents or the interests of the sources?

anama Papers und Wikileaks: Wie gehen Journalisten mit geheimen Informationen um? (deutsch) © Bundeszentrale für politische Bildung

Panama Papers and Wikileaks: How do Journalists Handle Secret Information? (in German)

Frederick Obermaier is one of the journalists behind the publication of the Panama Papers. He and other international journalists evaluated countless documents from an anonymous source. We wanted to know how a journalist handles such a situation.

Mit Überwachung gegen Rassismus (deutsch) © Bundeszentrale für politische Bildung

Cell Phones Against Injustice: Surveillance, Racism & Black Lives Matter (in German)

Capturing police abuses per cell phone plays a big role in challenging institutionalized racism in the US. Adam Elliott-Cooper studies the relationship between police and society - and warns that technical solutions aren't impervious to racist cliches.

Friends at the Keyhole © bpb

Friends at the Keyhole: Germany and the NSA (in German)

In March 2014 the German government established a committee to investigate the so-called NSA Affair. The main question: How can intelligence services be democratically regulated? And which threat is more serious: the NSA or cyber attacks? 

Mass Surveillance Doesn't Prevent Attacks © Bundeszentrale für politische Bildung

William Binney and the NSA: Why I Became a Whistleblower!

William Binney is one of the first and most famous of the whistleblowers who turned their backs on the NSA. Binney departed the NSA shortly after 9/11, and has been cautioning society since then about the dangers inherent in borderless, uncontrolled surveillance.

Future Shock: Big Cities, Smart Data © bpb

Future Shock: Big Cities, Smart Data

Who will regulate the city of the future: when we rent out our living quarters online to maintain our standard of living, when an app replaces public transit in small cities, when the traffic of our digital transactions is used by private companies that take over governmental responsibilities?

Future Shock: Big Cities, Smart Data © bpb

Gatekeeping Across Borders

In the early days of the Internet, many dreamed of a society without boundaries. Today, the so-called gatekeepers, the guards regulating the access to and sorting of the information, haven't disappeared. Instead, they are more powerful than before. Google and Facebook play a role in determining what we see.

Controlling the Guard: The Tactical Technology Collective © Bundeszentrale für politische Bildung

Controlling the Guard: The Tactical Technology Collective (in German)

Surveillance is a highly technical topic. The Tactical Technology Collective, known as Tactical Tech, wants to change that with its interdisciplinary approach. Using artists, hackers and activitis, the collective aims to make the issue more approachable.

Seeing and Being Seen © bpb

Seeing and Being Seen: Surveillance as Self-Defense (in German)

Eavesdropping doesn't just occur in private. What role do cameras play in protesting police brutality? Does an individual have any say when his sovereignty is taken away?

Create Your Profile: Political Art and Technology © bpb

Create Your Profile: Political Art and Technology (in German)

When art responds politically, does it become a focus of secret service attention? Theater director Angela Richter has spoken with whistleblowers around the world.

Art, Politics and Activism © Bundeszentrale für politische Bildung

Uniting with Art Against Surveillance? Political art and Activism (in German)

Can art do anything against surveillance? How political can and should art be? When is art activitism, and activism art? Florian Malzacher is a dramaturge and curator with a special focus on the interface between art and activism.

Future Shock: Big Cities, Smart Data © bpb

Wrapup Discussion for the Symposium "Sensitive Data"

Nishant Shah and Renata Avila let the weekend run its course before they finally confronted curators Sarah Harrison and Tobi Müller - and the audience - with the big question: What can we do?

Panel discussions

Friday, January 20

Saturday, January 21

Sunday, January 22

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