The Hidden History of Big Brother in America - (Thom Hartmann Hidden History) by Thom Hartmann (Paperback)

About the Book

"This book deals with two very large and often amorphous concepts: privacy and surveillance in the context of both government and the marketplace. Both concepts have undergone changes over the millennia of recorded human history, and those changes have dramatically sped up and expanded over the past few centuries, starting with the widespread use of the printing press in the mid- to late-15th century when books and newspapers began to proliferate across Europe and the rest of the "civilized" world by the end of the 17th century. The development of radio, television and the internet in the 20th century heightened the need to define more clearly what both concepts meant and how they applied both to governments (the "public sector") and individual and corporate players (the "private sector"). The Thought Police and Big Brother are terms introduced into the popular lexicon by George Orwell in his novel 1984; Big Brother was the overweening all-powerful government of Orwell's novel, and the Thought Police were those who managed to burrow so deeply into every citizen's behavior, speech and even thoughts that they could control or punish behavior based on the slightest deviations from orthodoxy. Orwell was only slightly off the mark. Big Brother types of government, and Thought Police types of social control, are now widespread in the world and incompatible with democracy, as I'll show in more detail later in the book. Most concerning for Americans and citizens of other "democratic" nations, the mentality of both have heavily infiltrated both American government and corporate sectors, reaching so deeply into the day-to-day details of our lives that the techniques and technologies they use can - and do -not only control, but predict our behavior"--

Book Synopsis

The radio host and New York Times-bestselling author reveals how government and corporations misuse our personal data and how we can reclaim our privacy.

Many Americans worry about how companies like Facebook invade their privacy and harvest their data, but few fully understand the details of how their information is used--and misused. In this thought-provoking book, Thom Hartmann reveals exactly how the government and corporations are tracking our every online move and using our data for purposes ranging from buying elections to monetizing our lives.

Hartmann uses extensive, vivid examples to highlight the consequences of Big Data on all aspects of our lives, and traces the history of surveillance. As he explains, the goal of those who violate privacy and use surveillance is almost always social control and behavior modification.

Along with covering the history, Hartmann shows how we got to where we are today, how China--with its new Social Credit System--serves as a warning, and how we can and must avoid a similarly dystopian future. By delving into the Constitutional right to privacy, Hartmann reminds us of our civil right and shows how we can restore it.

"Expertly chronicles how Big Data coercively shapes our lives to profit off us . . . Hartmann's urgent warning about the rise of the corporate-police state couldn't be timelier." --Maya Schenwar, coauthor of Prison by Any Other Name

Praise for Thom Hartmann

"Solid research." --Publishers Weekly

"Brilliant ideas and eloquent writing."--John Perkins, author of Confessions of an Economic Hit Man

Review Quotes

"I learned so much from The Hidden History of Big Brother in America about the machinations of Facebook, the impacts of renter surveillance, and the harsh realities of racist facial recognition and data collection by the police and ICE. I learned how surveillance mechanisms have shapeshifted over the centuries, becoming 'kinder and gentler' but also more insidious. (I also learned that hyenas vote by sneezing!) Through crystal-clear, relatable prose and engaging narratives, Hartmann expertly chronicles how Big Data coercively shapes our lives to profit off us, control us, and punish us--under the guise of helping us. Hartmann's urgent warning about the rise of the corporate-police state couldn't be timelier."
--Maya Schenwar, Editor-in-Chief, Truthout, author of Locked Down, Locked Out, and coauthor of Prison by Any Other Name

"Thom is a national treasure. Read him, embrace him, learn from him, and follow him as we all work for social change."
--Robert Greenwald, political activist and founder and President, Brave New Films

"From the Bush years to the present, Thom Hartmann has been one of very few voices constantly willing to tell the truth."
--Bill McKibben, author of Falter

About the Author

Thom Hartmann is a four-time winner of the Project Censored Award, a New York Times bestselling author of thirty-three books, and America's #1 progressive talk radio show host. His show is syndicated on local for-profit and nonprofit stations and broadcasts nationwide and worldwide. It is also simulcast on television into nearly 60 million US and Canadian homes.