How Many Eyes? Five Eyes!

 The Five Eyes: "Supra-national intelligence organization that does not answer to the known laws of its own countries" - Edward Snowden (2013 Whistleblower, former NSA Contractor)

The Five Eyes Law Enforcement Group, aka FVEY or Five Eyes, is an intelligence alliance between the United States, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, and the United Kingdom. These countries are parties to the UKUSA Agreement - the United Kingdom-United States Intelligence Communications Act. 

Five Eyes was created in 1946 as a result of the 1941 Atlantic Charter of WWII, a joint agreement between the United Kingdom and the United States establishing postwar goals. In more simpler terms, the major spy organizations of these five countries spy on the citizens of each others' countries - creating one large, illegal spy blob. 

 Instead of spying for safety measures, the Five Eyes illegally spy on citizens' private lives, communications, and accounts in order to exchange information and keep their authoritative power as "Big Brother". Because surveillance of citizens without probable cause is completely illegal under the Constitution, the United States uses the Five Eyes to find a loophole in its own security measures. If the United Kingdom is spying on US citizens (and exchanging that information with the United States), then the US government is technically not gaining information illegally according to its own laws. 

The first security program created under the Five Eyes was ECHELON which was used to intercept communication between the Soviet Union and its Eastern Bloc allies during the Cold War. This project was OFFICIALLY established in 1971 and was defined as "A global network of electronic spy stations that can eavesdrop on telephones, faxes and computers. It can even track bank accounts. This information is stored in Echelon computers, which can keep millions of records on individuals. Officially, however, Echelon doesn't exist " by The Guardian paper in Great Britain. After this paper, the first official ECHELON whistleblower was Perry Fellwock, under the code name Winslow Peck. This former NSA analyst revealed the real intention behind ECHELON to Ramparts magazine in 1972. By the end of the 20th century, ECHELON was used to monitor private conversations between each of the countries' citizens, not just for foreign government intel.

ECHELON - The NSA's Global Spying Network

After the 9/11 terrorist attack, Five Eyes expanded their surveillance to the entire World Wide Web on the Internet in response to the War on Terror. With this increase in illegal surveillance, the Five Eyes became the most comprehensive espionage alliance in history. In 2010, and continuing into today, the Five Eyes has access to the United States government's classified Internet sources - allowing for spying to occur through device, human, geospatial, and signal methods. Although this is obviously a breach in citizens' privacy and fundamental, personal rights, there are some actions being taken on the flip side which seem to point toward a more secure future - the International Court of Justice ordered Australia to stop spying on East Timor in March 2014, resulting in the first restriction to ever be placed on the Five Eyes Law Enforcement Group.

Sources

https://www.lowyinstitute.org/the-interpreter/suspicion-creeps-five-eyes

https://privacyinternational.org/learn/five-eyes

Hey Alexa...? Is Privacy really Private?

Technology has been an incredible tool for hundreds of years - from stone and wood to cables and wires. It has been on our side through wars, celebrations, elections, and much more. Who would have thought that something manmade would turn against man as fast and as strong as it did? In case you haven't realized yet - privacy is not private anymore.

One of the recent technological innovations that has taken over the world is Amazon Alexa. Released by Amazon in 2014, Alexa is an artificial intelligence virtual assistant that can provide answers to almost any question you could ask. This technology was first developed to be the voice in the Amazon Echo smart speaker but soon became knowledgable and technical enough to control home automated systems, complete scheduled 'skills', or search the Internet to provide more accurate answers to consumers' questions. Alexa can now be utilized at home, in businesses, at conferences, and basically anywhere else with the proper internet connection. Amazon Alexa has inspired other companies to create their own smart devices through artificial intelligence, such as LG, Jargon, and Apple. 

With this innovation, Amazon made many daily activities so much easier for consumers. It was definitely a hit in America as lazy Americans could lay on the couch and ask a question instead of getting up and researching on the Internet. Alexa can track grocery lists, plan schedules, announce the weather, answer questions, and play all kinds of music. All of these capabilities are amazing, but how does this artificially intelligent machine connect the dots between your interests? 

Amazon Alexa, just like other social media technologies such as Facebook or Instagram, uses an algorithm to find out which advertisements and brands would be best for each specific consumer. From a public relations perspective, that is an incredible marketing tool, however, from a consumer perspective, that is incredibly terrifying. Not only can Alexa track searches, but she also never stops listening. As long as the device Alexa is on is plugged in, it continues listening to all commotion and conversation going on in its proximity - even if you aren't directly speaking to it through alert words like "Alexa" or "Amazon". Private conversations in private households or private businesses are not private after all. Anytime it listens, Alexa completes a keyword search to pick out specific websites, brands, songs, and other data that would attract that specific consumer. So, the next time you talk to your brother or sister about where you want to have dinner and an advertisement for that restaurant comes on your Spotify, Pandora, or Apple Music, think about the last time you unplugged crazy Alexa!

As an owner of an Amazon Alexa, I can definitely attest to how useful this technology is, however, after watching the Ted talks on privacy, my fear of the artificial intelligence has doubled. My mom never wanted one in our house, but it has almost become a necessity due to to the ease of accessing music, asking questions while multitasking, or detecting what package has been delivered. Unfortunately, I don't think my family could live without it. We do unplug our Amazon Echo dot once in a while, but we've really tried to push our loss of privacy to the back of our minds. After learning about all the other ways the government can spy on its citizens, I honestly can't say I'm surprised about this recent innovation, and I'm going to focus a lot more on what thoughts I should be keeping private in my mind - not in the proximity of technology. 

Sources

https://www.britannica.com/technology/artificial-intelligence

https://developer.amazon.com/en-US/alexa

https://towardsdatascience.com/how-amazon-alexa-works-your-guide-to-natural-language-processing-ai-7506004709d3

Netflix: An Innovation

How do you watch television and movies? Are you old school and stick to cable, or do you even pay for cable anymore? With the new innovations for the entertainment industry, such as Netflix, it's very hard for people to not adopt these new versions of entertainment. 

Netflix, founded by Marc Randolph and Reed Hastings in 1997, is a subscription based streaming service for all the possible television shows, movies, or documentaries one could imagine. As of January 2021, 203.7 million people are subscribed to Netflix - 73 million of which are from the United States. First starting as a DVD rental business, the streaming services were created in 2007 leading to Netflix creating their own content in 2013 with the release of House of Cards, inspiring Netflix Original content. Thanks to market capitalization, Netflix became the largest entertainment/media company in July 2020. 

According to the Diffusion of Innovations Theory, there are 5 categories along the journey of innovation acceptance once it reaches popularity. The Netflix phenomenon caught on very quickly due to the ease of its platform; as everyone knows, Americans, especially of this day and age, love to look for shortcuts in everything they do. Instead of having to take out a DVD, put it in the disk player, mess with the buttons, and figure out the remote all to watch one 30 minute television show, Netflix allows people to just press a button - or even speak into a remote - to find all seasons of a television series. 

Netflix: The Perfect Answer to America's Pure Laziness

Netflix was obviously a hit with pioneers and innovators (the first 2.5%) because they kept working on advancing the technology to further spread its influence. They even created a "Netflix Prize" Contest to encourage other technological companies to find a way to increase the matching algorithm of "Top Picks for You" by 10%. BellKor Pragmatic Chaos won this contest, leading to streaming subscriptions in 2007. The early adopters (the next 13.5%) were the first subscribers to Netflix during its first phase of DVD rentals. The early majority (the first 34%) started subscribing in 2007 after subscriptions began being streamed through the Internet. The average time of adoption was most likely around 2010 when streaming-only plans (no DVDs) were released to the public as the Internet become more advanced. This type of service actually became the primary revenue generator for Netflix. Next, the late majority (the last 34%) started subscribing as Netflix Originals, series's of original content created by Netflix writers, directors, and producers, continued being released. Like the name states, Netflix Originals can ONLY be seen on Netflix, so many people started subscribing to Netflix just to watch shows, such as The Crown and Stranger Things among others. Lastly, the laggards (the last 16%) are still working on subscribing to this day. Most of the laggards are older generations, such as baby boomers, who aren't technologically savvy and are just starting to learn the "way of the times" from their children and grandchildren. 

There are so many positives thanks to the innovation of Netflix, however, there are some negatives as well. Netflix can be seen as a disadvantage in social settings because it distracts young children from learning how to properly communicate with others. Some parts of Netflix aren't censored, so kids can watch inappropriate shows that could influence violence or drugs, without parental permission. However, Netflix has changed the world of entertainment! No one will watch movies, television, or documentaries the same ever again - no commercials, no large crowds, no tickets to buy at the cinema. 

Sources

https://www.britannica.com/topic/Netflix-Inc

https://interestingengineering.com/the-fascinating-history-of-netflix

iPhone vs. Samsung - Extra Thoughts

Which cellular device do you like to use - the iPhone or the Samsung? Now, which one actually provides the better quality? Yes, there are other types of androids, such as the Google Pixel, however, the competition for the best cellular device has stayed between Apple and Samsung as their products continue gaining popularity. 

Apple, founded by Steve Jobs, and Samsung, founded by Chang-Gyu Hwang, have been in a "thermonuclear war" for almost the past 2 decades. This competition started when Samsung's NAND flash memory became the sole memory in Apple's iPods in 2005, motivating Samsung to release their own smartphone in 2009. Lawsuits and counter lawsuits about patent licenses or patent infringements started flying between the competitors, and brand power advertisements became a turning point in the game. As Samsung watched from behind the scenes as the new big iThing came out, they started developing their monumental commercial campaign, - "The Next Big Thing is Already Here" - bringing the competition to a tie for the first time. At the end of 2011, Samsung became the fastest growing global brand on Facebook and Twitter as their shipments increased to #1 in phone manufacturers. The war continues today as Samsung and Apple innovate more and more devices and options that are necessary for survival in the 21st century and beyond. 

In terms of privacy, it's hard to trust any type of technology nowadays - you never know who or what is behind the other side of the screen. Most of the time, it's a computer collecting data upon data for private companies who, in turn, sell that information to the government. Now, which company do you think is best for privacy - Apple or Samsung? According to security companies like Norton 360, Apple's iOS system is considered the most secure because they operate on a closed system, meaning outside app developers don't have access to source codes and consumers cannot modify their codes. Because of this, it's harder for hackers to break down barriers protecting the system from hacking. On the opposite side of the spectrum, Samsung's Android system - fueled by Google - operates on an open system meaning there are more possible vulnerabilities that attract hackers, in addition to the Android system already being a hacker 'goldmine' due to it's global identity. However, it's best for consumers of both Samsung and Apple to be aware of possible malware and to stay away from third party app stores. Yes, both companies have their flaws, however, I would recommend Apple's less flexibility compared to Samsung's higher consumer control because Apple is less of a target for cybercrime thanks to its stringent controls. 

Sources

https://www.forbes.com/sites/forbesdigitalcovers/2020/03/13/samsung-vs-apple-inside-the-brutal-war-for-smartphone-dominance/?sh=64768bfe4142

https://us.norton.com/internetsecurity-mobile-android-vs-ios-which-is-more-secure.html

EOTO: What I Learned

 After watching other presentations about our world of technology, I was most fascinated with the invention of SMS texting. Developed in 1984 by the Franco-German GSM Cooperation, this short message service was invented to include written communication features on mobile devices. Before SMS texting was available,  communication happened via landline through pagers, in person, or through letter writing. Our society would be lost without FaceTime, social media apps, or group messaging; therefore, we should be forever grateful for Friedhelm Hillebrand and Bernard Ghillebaert of GSM Cooperation's for setting the foundation of advanced, communicative technology.

SMS texting stands for 'short message service' because at first, the message only allowed for a maximum of 160 characters. As technology advanced and people started understanding the key to this type of communication, that maximum increased and eventually became unlimited for certain devices. Although SMS texting was first developed in 1984, the first text was not officially sent until 1992 - almost 10 years later. The popularity and advancement of texting grew gradually from .4 texts per month to about 35 by 2000. 

The physical processes of SMS texting began with a multi-tap system on older phones, such as the Blackberry, where certain keys on the number pad corresponded with letters of the alphabet. Honestly, this seemed pretty confusing when I was a child and would play on my parents' old phones, so it's a good thing technology has advanced for the millennial and generation Z young adults. The process then shifted to a T-9 system, a texting prediction system where specific numbers in a row would automatically introduce a word - similar to the automatic prediction process for texting today. (We are all lazy nowadays!) Last but not least the T-9 system shifted to the regular keyboard we have today on touchscreen phones, with the addition of the Swype feature in 2011 - another lazy way to communicate, just a swipe of the finger, not a tap of thumbs. 

It's unbelievable to think that our parents' generations didn't have any of the technology like we have today. I can't imagine pulling out my flip phone to make a quick text in between classes; I'm sure it wasn't even possible to text without a teacher noticing then. As communication is ever changing and advancing, we've had other additions, such as voice to text readings or watches we can text or speak on. Who knows where the next brightest mind will take us, and what innovations will transform our lives once again. 

Sources

Presentation during EOTO Class on Feb. 10 - Mary Sosebee (Group 3)

Next on the Mic... Hello, Radio!

 Nowadays, people take our communication methods for granted. One quick tip-tap on your phone and you've sent texts, emails, direct messages, or posted a blog in no time. In addition to communication, one tip-tap on your phone will take you to multiple outlets to find hundreds of thousands of entertainment, music, and news sources. It's hard to imagine that people had to physically go to events or town squares, or get messages and news from the pony express in order to communicate to the world and others in our community before the invention of the radio by Guglielmo Marconi in the late 1890s.

Guglielmo Marconi, an Italian inventor, is credited with the invention of the radio in 1896 by creating a 'wireless telegraph' that could transmit morse code. He brought electromagnetic waves into the real world by broadcasting the first transatlantic signal, after founding his own commercial wireless company, on December 12, 1901. Unfortunately, some officials disregard Marconi as the 'Father of Radio' and the Supreme Court of the United States even invalidated 4 of his patents and claimed Nikola Tesla as the inventor in 1943. 

Marconi's radio saved the Titanic survivors by establishing communication between the ship and the RMS Carpathia.

On December 24, 1906 in Brant Rock, Massachusetts, Reginald Fessenden sent the first long-distance transmission of human voice and music. This accomplishment later inspired commercial radio broadcasts.

Tuners, which receive radio frequency transmissions and convert specific carrier frequencies into fixed frequencies that allow sound to be amplified more clearly, are specific for each radio station. These tuners were formed in 1916 with Edwin Armstrong's creation of superheterodyne circuits that receive the frequencies converted by the tuners. This influenced Armstrong's creation of FM radio in 1933, resulting in clearer, non-static sound compared to AM radio.

The further development of the radio became essential during World War I with communication between commanders and lieutenants to the men on the front line. This communication was necessary for planning routes and attacks that would give the Allies an advantage over the Central Powers, and for communicating to ships and sending signals between ships out at sea. 

After the success of radio communication during World War I, civilians began buying radios, resulting in the creation of commercial and entertainment broadcasting. KDKA, the first radio broadcasting station created for announcing results of the Presidential Election, was founded in Wilkinsburg, Pennsylvania, in 1920, and stimulated the 'Golden Age of Radio' from 1920 to the late 1950's. By the beginning of the 1920's, over 500 broadcasting stations were founded and most households in the United States and Europe owned at least one radio. Radios became the main source of entertainment for all ages, and influenced a new habit of crowding around the main console in the family room to listen to music, comedy shows, or news after supper. 

Main radio console passed down through generations on maternal side of my family

AT&T released the first radio advertisement in 1923, which influenced the creation of CBS and NBC in response to AT&T as the only official broadcasting station. (Later, CBS and NBC transformed into the televised broadcasting companies they are today.) Radios, especially these stations, were the main source of communication for rallying opinions and war news during World War II. It informed the public of the events happening overseas in real time for the first time in American history, and served as propaganda on the home front. Not only were radios available by hand, but they were also included in airplanes, submarines, tanks, etc. for more reliable communication. This influenced the incorporation of the Navajo 'code talker' language which gave the Axis powers a communicative advantage throughout the war.

The essential use of the radio during World War II proved this technology to be an astonishing advancement in communication for tons of different situations, from war to gossip. After the war, radio added more entertainment stations for music in addition to its news broadcasting, in order to compete with the newly developed television from the late 40's into the early 50's. With this revolution, music and radio became synonymous and that relationship has continued up to modern day. As music became more and more popular in the radio culture, the records industry started slowly diminishing since it was quicker to tune into a station playing songs automatically, than placing a record and flipping it - especially since those record usually only played one genre at a time. The 'Top 40' - similar to the 'Top 100 Billboard Hits' today - was created in response to the birth of rock n' roll music in the 50's and radio broadcasting had moved outside the house into automobiles, as well. These developments helped keep radio alive while the television was gaining popularity. As the television was more focused on news broadcasts, the radio started including radio personalities, more comedy or dramas, more popular music, and advertisements to keep up with the times. Some broadcasting stations stayed strictly for news - usually public-service stations- but others changed as radio popularity grew and supported more outside music formats in the 50's and 60's.

FM Radio became the fastest-growing segment in the radio broadcast business in the 1960's with the help of new technology called stereophonic radio in 1961, and the National Public Radio was the first American national network linking noncommercial stations in 1970. This allowed for companies to join 'memberships' of NPR radio stations to increase their programming advertisements and created more popular programs for the NPR stations to carry, such as All Things Considered. "Drive Time" radio became most popular when job routes became longer as urbanization increased after the 60's. Thanks to the Telecommunications Act of 1996, the growth of big chain stations dramatically increased which led to the formation of 'splintering' formats. By 1980, there were about a dozen formats available which tripled by the beginning of the 21st century - including genres such as 'golden oldies' and hot adult contemporary. 

Radio and music have been synonymous for decades, but as the 21st century started, these ideas became a pivotal point of cultures around the globe. Digital radio services, such as Sirius and XM, became the rave, and have influenced creation of more advanced technology surrounding music and radio entertainment. Right now, we can't survive without Spotify, Pandora, Amazon Music, Apple Music, or SoundCloud.... I'm sure Guglielmo Marconi had no idea his 'wireless telegraph' invented in his attic would dominate the entertainment industry, and provide so much more than the friendly communication and news announcements he had in mind. 

Sources

https://www.britannica.com/topic/National-Broadcasting-Co-Inc

https://www.britannica.com/topic/radio/New-initiatives-1960-80

https://www.history.com/topics/inventions/guglielmo-marconi

https://www.pbs.org/wgbh/americanexperience/features/rescue-development-radio/

https://www.techwholesale.com/history-of-the-radio.html

https://www.thoughtco.com/edwin-howard-armstrong-1991244

Benefits of the Freedom of Expression

 

According to the First Amendment, "Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the Government for a redress of grievances.". To describe it in more basic terms, the US Constitution protects the people's freedom of speech, as long as it is not incitement; therefore, citizens can say whatever they want and believe their own ideals and values, even if they disagree with the government. This freedom of expression has 8 values that detail why US citizens are so lucky to be protected under the First Amendment. Today, we will focus on the important value of self-actualization. 

Psychologists study the above pyramid, known as Maslow's Hierarchy of Needs, to evaluate what humans need to feel comfortable, safe, and happy in their lives. At the top of the pyramid is the need for self-actualization - a desire to become the most that one can be. Not only do you need to complete the 4 previous levels of the pyramid to reach self-actualization, but freedom of expression is also super essential. In order to feel fully connected to other humans, we have to be able to communicate effectively and offer emotional intelligence in social, political, and other situations. According to the Supreme Court in the Procunier v. Martinez case as told by Rodney A. Smolla, "The First Amendment serves not only the needs of the polity but the needs of the human spirit - a spirit that demands self-expression.". This freedom of expression is not solely for opinionated expression about the government - it's also for the people's personal opinions. Self-fulfillment comes from the integrity of our identity and thoughts, however, these thoughts only become strong and complex through the communication and exchanges of ideas and values. These processes can only be properly completed and lead to self-fulfillment if the freedom of speech can be freely expressed and protected. 

Freedom of speech is a truly important aspect of human life; we wouldn't be the technologically savvy, interpersonal people we are today without our access to freely expressed communication. As the years have moved on, another advancement in human life - social media - has greatly increased the value of self-actualization through freedom of expression. On platforms such as Twitter, Facebook, or Instagram, people can voice their opinions through photos, blogs, highlights, or retweets/shares. Usually, these opinions and thoughts help people present themselves more clearly and details how they want others to identify them. Are you a professional, or are you more immature and only looking for fun? Do you offer positive vibes to the community, or are you a narcissist who only looks toward negativity? Social media allows people to become whoever they want - an obvious step of reaching self-actualization since it is a desire to become the most one can be. This is especially evident in cases where people are 'fake' in real life, but will say anything behind the safety net - the computer screen. Social media helps people reach self-actualization by taking away some fear of embarrassment that people usually feel when expressing themselves through communication in public. That courage can be positive by encouraging people to come out of their shell and connect with new people or experiences, however, it can also be negative and increase shameful communication such as cyberbullying. Whichever way social media is used for, it increases the search for knowledge and thirst for personal identity that thrives on the ability to express how and why you feel a certain way with clear motivations and strong communication, without the fear of legal criticism by the government. Self-actualization relies on the foundation of a comfortability of one's self that can only be rewarded through interpersonal communication and confidence in protected speech. 

Sources

https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/abraham-maslows-hierarchy-needs-social-media-chris-miller-ma/

https://uscivilliberties.org/themes/4465-self-fulfillment-theory-of-free-speech.html

War and Peace?

When people describe war, they think of bloodshed, politics, and death - nothing positive. However, for some reason, the United States loves broadcasting about the breaking news of wartime and is constantly looking for more and more ways to spend money on military advantages. Because of all the negativity and fear of war, wouldn't you expect citizens to disagree with this dangerous turmoil, and hate that it can be viewed everywhere they turn? Well, if your answer is yes, then you're right! There are plenty of sources of antiwar citizens or journalists who speak against this expensive horror, but they are silenced by the government instead. It's so much harder to find information on these antiwar efforts because the government sees these antiwar sources as criticisms against the government, so they constantly censor these journalists, even though that is technically violating their First Amendment rights of free speech.

Counterculture of the 1960's - that's what most people think when asked about antiwar efforts. These efforts were very significant during the age of hippies, the 60's, because there was lots of unrest between the government and the people about involving the United States in the Vietnam War. As years have gone on, this same antiwar sentiment has remained detrimental in the government and citizen relationship as the United States continues to use citizens' tax dollars to pay for unnecessary wars and operations. 

With the technology in today's age, many journalists have used anti-war websites as their outlet for expressing their disagreement with the government's wartime decisions. Antiwar.com and the American Conservative are important sources, but, they're not widely talked about because the government wants to hide any oppression they receive - especially when it's on such a large political and economic scale as war. Some of the articles in published on these websites aren't even about war, but they're about the devastating effects of violence on our home frontier. According to an article on the American Conservative by Jon Miltimore, "The percentage of US adults who say violence is a justifiable means to advance political change has surged in recent years, among Democrats and Republicans.". This could partially be a result of learned behavior, such as when citizens are constantly faced with war updates and crimes completed by the government; this influences the idea that violence solves all problems, on American soil and on foreign soil. It's embarrassing to realize that our government has enticed violence so much, that it has made our 'American dream' country to be scary to live in. 

According to the First Amendment of the US Constitution, citizens have the right to petition the government; in blatant terms, they can criticize the government without fear of backlash. Unfortunately, the government has found a way to illegally slip through the cracks and censor those voices. This takes away a fundamental right which makes America, America. The United States is unlike other countries where monarchies and communism rule all, instead, the people are given the right to think and speak freely so they feel protected and valued in their homeland. The Founding Fathers are turning in their graves right now due to the utter disrespect the current US government has held to the Constitution, especially when that disrespect is toward the freedom of speech that can allow citizens to put their tax dollars where they see most fit.

Sources

https://fee.org/articles/us-capitol-attack-a-reminder-of-the-perils-of-using-violence-in-the-name-of-injustice/

https://www.antiwar.com

https://www.theamericanconservative.com