Very recently, big search engines and social media giants have been under suspicion for indulging in unethical activities, whether it be US Justice Department's lawsuit against Google for illegally deploying its market power to hamper competition and maintain dominance or the US Congress demanding a criminal probe against Facebook India on interfering with India's electoral process. Privacy-related allegations have surfaced against Zuckerberg's Facebook time and again. From an individual user's private data to a democracy's election results, these are part of just the limited horrors posed by social media and especially when a select few dominate the virtual market.
Here's a look at some documentaries you can watch to get a deeper understanding of dynamic aspects of the dark side of social media:
- The Social Dilemma
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This 2020 documentary took the world by a buzz especially young adults and also witnessed several of them quitting or taking a break from social media. The 94-minute feature directed by Jeff Orlowski documents first-hand encounters of former employees, executives and top professionals of the tech industry. The film tends to delve into the rising use of social media and the problematic consequences it brings with itself ranging from data mining to internet addiction. The real-time interviews are interspersed with the story of a teenage boy's addiction to social media. The kind of impact depicted by the use of social media affecting your mental health to your private information is sure to run chills down your spine.
- Terms and Conditions May Apply
As soon as you click on "I Agree" to terms and conditions while signing up on any application or website, you hand over more information about yourself than you are aware of and surprisingly, that too legally. This 2013 docudrama, by Cullen Hoback addresses a similar aspect. Most users do not even completely read the instructions and terms they are seemingly agreeing to and the film explores how online service providers and not just government take hold of this data and use it for their own purpose. Facebook CEO, Mark Zuckerberg also makes an appearance in the film. This fascinating film is a wake up call to every internet user.
- The Great Hack
If you're looking to explore how internet data and social media can influence politics and democracy around countries, you cannot miss this 2019 documentary film on Netflix. It is heavily based on the Facebook-Cambridge Analytica data scandal. You're sure to be blown away by how data is deployed for political gains and in this particular scenario, it was even able to impact massive political events such as UK's Brexit and US elections, 2016. The movie showcases the behind-the-scenes of the scandal and the several people involved and weaves it all into a single narrative in an attempt to expose the truth.
- The Power of Privacy
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This one's a 28 minute short film released in 2016 following the adventure of a well-known journalist and psychologist Aleks Krotoski as she attempts to sift through the reality of the digital world in 21st century. Even though the run-time is short, the creators manage to access some fascinating arenas revolving around the issue. It again focuses on how user-private data is acquired leading to privacy breach and the significance of data security. The whole purpose is to make the viewers more aware and to spark a much needed conversation.
- Catfish
This 2010 American documentary film explores the theme of 'catfishing' : a type of activity where a person does not reveal their true identity, rather operating through a fake social media presence. Catfishing is relatively common to come across these days and that's what the movie builds its story upon. It features a young man, Nev, being filmed by the directors of the movie, as he gets romantically involved with a woman on the social networking site, Facebook. This drama acclaimed commercial as well as critical success and makes for an enjoyable watch despite being in a realistic setting.
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