The Surveillance Web

Book excerpt: The rise of CCTV and surveillance technologies has been one of the key developments in contemporary society, but its impact has often been analysed in a fragmented manner. This book addresses this issue by providing a detailed, micro-sociological account of the construction of a CCTV network in one English city. It differs from previous studies (which have concentrated on open street CCTV systems) in documenting and analysing the use of visual surveillance systems in a number of different locations and institutional settings, including the industrial workplace, shopping malls, high-rise housing schemes, and hospitals. It is concerned not just with abstract categories of 'grand theory' but seeks to explain how people living in contemporary society experience these changes. The Surveillance Web situates the growth of visual surveillance systems in the context of many of the key concerns of theorists of modernity, and makes a key contribution to understanding the nature of the relationship between surveillance and society. Its starting point is to view the relationship between surveillance and society as a two way process: the book looks at both the social impact of visual surveillance systems, and at how the impact of these technologies is shaped by existing social relations, political practice and cultural traditions. provides a richly textured account and analysis of the introduction of visual surveillance technologies (CCTV) in an English cityexplores the impact of the introduction and use of visual surveillance systems in a wide variety of locales and institutional settings, both public and privatemakes a key contribution to theoretical debates over the relationship between surveillance systems and society, one of the central concerns of theorists of modernity