Is ‘Uberveillance’ Coming for Us All?

It’s No Longer Sci-Fi. Trackers Embedded in Our Bodies Are Threatening Our Privacy—and Our Humanity

The smartphone has become a modern Swiss Army knife: driver’s license, e-payment device, camera, radio, television, map, blood pressure monitor, workstation, babysitter, pocket AI, and general gateway to the internet. And now consumers are leaving their smartphones behind to sport lightweight smartwatches with equivalent functionality. With every update, our devices inch closer to us—our bodies, our minds. From the handheld, to the wearable, to the … What next?

Nearly 20 years ago, in 2006—before X, Amazon Web Services, iPhone, Fitbit, Uber, or ChatGPT—M.G. Michael was faced with a similar question. He …

Concept Art Association Co-Founder Nicole Hendrix | Zocalo Public Square • Arizona State University • Smithsonian

Concept Art Association Co-Founder Nicole Hendrix

If Someone Wants to Do Something, I’m Generally Down

Nicole Hendrix is a producer, creative director, and the co-founder and executive director of BRIC Foundation, an organization that focuses on increasing representation for women and people from historically excluded …

Where Asian Americans Need Affirmative Action

Our Focus on University Admissions Obscures the ‘Bamboo Ceiling’ in the Workplace

Zócalo is celebrating its 20th birthday this year! As part of the festivities, we’re publishing reflections and responses that revisit and reimagine some of …

Francis Barraud's 1898 black and white painting of the dog Nipper looking into an Edison Bell cylinder phonograph.

Her Voice Memos and My Grief

A Friend’s Digital Messages in a Bottle Carry on a Centuries-Long Tradition of Auditory Remembrance

One of my best friends died recently.

It still doesn’t feel real. The last time I saw her was the day after the Fourth of July. Her smile always lit up …

Anything ChatGPT Can Do, My Students Can Do Better

Why a Media History Professor Is Welcoming AI Into Her Classroom

Zócalo is celebrating its 20th birthday this year! As part of the festivities, we’re publishing reflections and responses that revisit and reimagine some of …

We Can Keep Dianne Feinstein in the Senate Forever

From Fundraising to Legislating, AI Can Do the Job

The fight over Dianne Feinstein’s future is a foolish waste of time. Both sides in the controversy over whether she should resign her seat now, or serve out her term, …