The Ethics of The Technology

“Nosedive” not only looks at how social media affects society, but also imagines how it might be changed in the future. The Atlantic describes this episode as “a version of America where every tiny interaction is ranked by the people involved on an app that [is synced] with augmented-reality contact lenses.” The episode focuses on how obsessive society is becoming of social media. The protagonist, Lacie, yearns to be at a 4.5. This would allow her to live in the neighborhood she wants. Although the story is compelling , the idea of linking social media, augmented reality and contact lenses is striking. These three things already exist, so the only thing needed is technology connecting them. The episode is effective in that sense; it shows something that is possible and doable.

Even though this type of society seems possible, we have been able to avoid it. How exactly? Well, recently a similar app, called Peeple, was launched. It is an app where you get to rate other people based on professionalism, relationship, among other things. The app received tons of criticism, one review saying, “Really? An app for judging people? This is such a laughably bad idea, imagine people were stupid and actually used this app like it mattered?” On the Apple App Store, Peeple has an average 1.7 rating. Moreover, our society seems to dislike the idea of judging others on an app. Our ethical principals is what’s stopping us from becoming like the society in “Nosedive”.