Discipline and Liberty: Television and Governance »

Gareth Palmer is Senior Lecturer in the School of Media, Music and Performance, University of Salford.

Taking Foucault's notion of Governance--the conduct of conduct--Gareth Palmer applies it to a range of television formats which have loosely been described as "reality TV." Big Brother, Video Diaries, Judge TV, Ricki Lake, and Stupid Behaviour Caught on Tape use a technology of discipline to produce confessions, revelations and transformations which render citizens more transparent than ever and can punish those of who dare to be different. Looking at how various agencies of the state have exhorted us to report crime--such as tax evasion, street crime, even benefit fraud--the author shows how constant surveillance is now integral to the process of citizenship.