CCTV: a Technology Under the Radar?

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CCTV: a Technology Under the Radar? CCTV: A technology under the radar? PhD Thesis University College London 2009 Inga Kroener Declaration: I, Inga Kroener, declare that the work presented in this thesis is my own. Where information has been derived from other sources, I confirm that this has been indicated in the thesis. 2 Acknowledgements: First and foremost I want to thank my supervisors Jane Gregory, for her unfailing support, encouragement and invaluable ideas, and Jon Agar, for his realistic advice and enthusiasm, particularly towards the empirical part of this thesis. Thanks also go to everyone in the Department of Science and Technology Studies at UCL for their help and encouragement along the way. Special thanks must go to Brian Balmer for his help with questionnaire development and statistics. I also want to thank Charles Thorpe for his advice and supervision during the first two years of this project. Thanks also go to Daniel Neyland for his help and advice during the later stages of my research. To all the people who participated in the questionnaire and interviews for this thesis – thank you for giving up your time. And to my friends and family – I am tremendously grateful for all your support and understanding throughout this process. Finally, this thesis is dedicated to my parents. For everything. 3 Abstract: Closed-circuit television (CCTV) cameras have become a ubiquitous feature of everyday life in the UK over the last thirty years. In this thesis I undertake an examination of the historical, political, social, economic, and technological factors, influencing the development, usage, and widespread dissemination of CCTV in the UK. I focus on the issue of why the UK has become so camera- surveilled, and especially the specific role that the public has played in relation to the development and use of the technology. I examine the historical factors through an analysis of the development of surveillance, policing, and political change, during the 20th and early 21st centuries, and early and contemporary uses of CCTV, situating this in the wider context of a history of the criminal justice system. I also look at the media and policy context in which CCTV has developed and become widespread, with this element of the thesis particularly informed by an analysis of the way in which the public are constructed. Next, I carry out an empirical study exploring public engagement and consultation in relation to, and feelings towards, the installation of CCTV onto two estates in East London as part of a project to expand access to digital services in London. Finally, I give an overview of international experiences of CCTV providing a broader context for the final analysis. I argue that the lack of legislation and regulation at the time of the inception of CCTV allowed its subsequent and rapid proliferation. The initial growth of CCTV also occurred at a time when public debate and engagement in science and technology policy did not take place. Its use as a tool for crime prevention was cemented by a police force looking for a shoulder to share the burden of fighting crime. This coupled with an availability of public money for the installation of CCTV systems, the need for a political solution to rising levels of crime, and an apparently passive public, formed the ideal environment for the rise of CCTV. 4 Contents: Abstract..............................................................................................4 List of Figures...................................................................................10 Chapter I: Introduction to the Thesis.......................................................11 1.1 CCTV in the UK..............................................................................11 1.2 Summary of research.......................................................................12 1.3 Research questions...........................................................................13 1.4 Outline of the thesis..........................................................................14 Chapter II: Theories and Frameworks of Society, Technology, Risk and the Media....................................................................17 2.1 Introduction....................................................................................17 2.2 Risk Society.....................................................................................19 2.3 Technocratic ideology and the role of experts.............................22 2.4 Technological determinism and social shaping............................25 2.5 The network, information, surveillance society...........................32 2.6 The public sphere...........................................................................39 2.7 Media effects and moral panics....................................................44 2.8 Conclusion.......................................................................................48 5 Chapter III: CCTV Literature Review......................................................50 3.1 Introduction....................................................................................50 3.2 CCTV and effectiveness................................................................50 3.3 CCTV and social control...............................................................57 3.4 CCTV and the public....................................................................64 3.5 CCTV, privacy, and human rights...............................................67 3.6 International CCTV research.......................................................69 3.7 Conclusion......................................................................................74 Chapter IV: Methodology..................................................................................75 4.1 Introduction...................................................................................75 4.2 Analytical framework...................................................................75 4.3 Selection of methodological approach and research instruments.....................................................................78 4.4 The questionnaire..........................................................................80 4.5 The interviews................................................................................83 4.6 Media analysis................................................................................87 4.7 Conclusion......................................................................................90 Chapter V: A Social and Political History of Britain in the 20th st and Early 21 Centuries.........................................................92 5.1 Introduction....................................................................................92 5.2 Britain in the 20th and early 21st centuries...................................92 5.3 Conclusion.....................................................................................111 6 Chapter VI: A History of CCTV in the UK...........................................114 6.1 Introduction...................................................................................114 6.2 Criminal justice.............................................................................114 6.3 History of CCTV..........................................................................123 6.3.1 Early uses...............................................................................123 6.4 Surveillance of the miners’ strike................................................133 6.5 CCTV after the miners’ strike.....................................................141 6.6 Conclusion.....................................................................................152 Chapter VII: CCTV and the Public..............................................................154 7.1 Introduction...................................................................................154 7.2 Local government promotion of CCTV.....................................155 7.3 Consultation and public engagement..........................................161 7.3.1 The Identity Cards Scheme..................................................162 7.3.2 National promotion of CCTV..............................................168 7.4 Media analysis................................................................................170 7.4.1 Press coverage of CCTV during the 1990s.........................173 7.4.2 Press coverage of CCTV from 2000 – 2005........................176 7.4.3 Press coverage of the 7 July London Underground bombings................................................................................183 7.4.4 Press coverage of CCTV from 2006 – 2008........................191 7.5 CCTV in the press.........................................................................202 7.6 Conclusion......................................................................................205 7 Chapter VIII: The Digital Bridge.....................................................................206 8.1 Introduction...................................................................................206 8.2 The Digital Bridge Project............................................................206 8.2.1 Press coverage of the Digital Bridge project............................211 8.3 Questionnaire results…………………………………………….212 8.4 Analysis of questionnaire responses…………………………….219 8.4.1 Closed questions.....................................................................219 8.4.2 Open questions............................................................................221
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