IRMA-International.org: Creator of Knowledge
Information Resources Management Association
Advancing the Concepts & Practices of Information Resources Management in Modern Organizations

Watching the Watchers: Digital Panopticism in the Age of Algorithmic Culture

Watching the Watchers: Digital Panopticism in the Age of Algorithmic Culture
View Sample PDF
Author(s): Amol Aanand Saxena (Christ University, Bangalore, India), Charu Sehgal (Christ University, Bangalore, India)and Babita (Christ University, Bangalore, India)
Copyright: 2026
Pages: 30
Source title: Digital Ideologies in the Age of Algorithmic Culture
Source Author(s)/Editor(s): Esra Gökçen Kaygisiz (University of Giresun, Turkey)
DOI: 10.4018/979-8-3373-4531-4.ch005

Purchase

View Watching the Watchers: Digital Panopticism in the Age of Algorithmic Culture on the publisher's website for pricing and purchasing information.

Abstract

The chapter deals with the ideology of Digital Panopticism as basically one of the major features of the algorithmic culture where power is exercised through the routine surveillance, data extraction, and predictive analytics. Using Michel Foucault's idea of the Panopticon as a starting point, the authors suggest that digital systems - for example, social media and algorithmic governance - are control structures that are spread out and therefore it is difficult to distinguish the zones where one is being observed and the zones where one is participating. The chapter links the concept of Digital Panopticism with the theories of the radical surveillance and digital capitalism and also examining the impact of the phenomena on subjectivity, autonomy, and behavior. The authors end the chapter by looking at moral theories and resistance movements to facilitate openness, taking responsibility, and the people's control in the age of digital technology.

Related Content

Somesh Varandani, Amit Kumar Jain, Kirti Varandani. © 2026. 32 pages.
Silvio Andrae. © 2026. 34 pages.
Rebeca Sanchez Figuera, Fernando Casado Gutierrez. © 2026. 48 pages.
S. Yogananthan, Ravishankar S. Ulle, Bharath Sampath, Shashi Kant Dikshit, Balaji Gopalan. © 2026. 36 pages.
Amol Aanand Saxena, Charu Sehgal, Babita. © 2026. 30 pages.
Vijeta Parihar, Twinkle Singh. © 2026. 32 pages.
Dhemy Brito, José Gabriel Andrade. © 2026. 24 pages.
Body Bottom