As demonstrated through the Black Mirror episode “NoseDive,” this episode demonstrates that possible upcoming reality of China’s current social credit system being implemented in Western societies. Therefore, this apparent social credit system possibility can be further analyzed in discussion with the role that social media will play in our future societies. China’s functioning social credit system can be compared to the Black Mirror episode in real life and the dystopian world of 1984 with a ‘Big Brother’ figure shadowing society (1). The implementation of a social credit score society has various implications and layers. For example, the function of Uber driver and passenger ratings can be associated with a type of social credit system, demonstrating that countries like the US and even Spain have aspects of this system (1). In China though, the social credit system extends to all realms of life, evaluating and quantifying all of one’s daily behaviors and actions into an encompassing score. As Social Media platforms continue to be more prevalent in our everyday life and social interactions, there is another layer to this social credit system discussion. This discussion poses these questions: How will an individual’s actions on Social Media influence his/her social credit scores? Will Social Media platforms be the driving factor for scores? How does the Black Mirror episode showcase an interesting perspective on social identities and this idea of the social credit system?
There are many aspects in our society that can likely be compared to China’s current social credit system today. With our increased Social Media usage and its role in establishing digital online identity, these platforms also initiate another aspect of this scoring system. In “NoseDive,” Lacie’s social score evolution and her persistence to improve her score throughout the episode demonstrates how important this ‘ranking’ is to her livelihood. In the realm of this episode, the social rank determines every aspect of life, from profession to relationships. The role that this scoring system plays in Lacie’s life is connected to the functionality of social media in our lives today. Our social media presence is linked to how we desire to be portrayed and understood in our real life interactions, and our online profile can even determine one’s professional trajectory. Comparatively, the Black Mirror episode’s ranking system perpetuates stereotypical unacquirable and perfect lifestyles, demonstrating quote-on-quote an ‘ideal’ social media profile filled with aesthetic picturesque and promotion of happiness (2). This episode critiques the superficial nature of social media and its extent to take over every aspect of life. This episode’s ranking apparatus promotes an elitist social normality in order to ensure stability and promote unrealistic standards, likewise to China’s implemented social credit system. Similarly in both China and the realm of Black Mirror’s “NoseDive,” quality of life is based on how well an individual ‘plays’ into the game, exhibiting the dangers of Social Media’s determination one’s way of living (2). Overall, “NoseDive” exposes the potential real-life implications of how far social media can be a determining factor in our lives, impacting every completed action in society.
China’s social credit system is an aspect of the country’s developing worldwide surveillance tactic, gathering information and following movements on every individual through on and offline presence. Western societies are appalled by this ‘horror-filled dystopia,’ but there seems to be operational similarities between this scoring system and the work behind Big Data. Without realizing, outlets like Google, Facebook, or Instagram are analyzing all online activities and forming individual profiles for every online user (3). Mainly used for marketing and advertising tactics, the monitoring of online interactions and storing this information in a database is similar to China’s surveilling nature of its social credit system (3). Our daily activities are being evaluated, from online shopping to tracking programs, following your every move. Although containing similar functionality, Big Data and China’s ranking system differ due to these programs implementation in our daily life. Although, with our increased usage and reliance of the Internet, we need to consider if we are heading toward a future where our online identity transcends and takes over our reality (3). I believe that “NoseDive” establishes this possible scoring system in our future throughout Western societies. It starts with rating restaurants, doctor appointments, or an Uber experience, but this social credit system continues to be an upcoming reality in some countries due to the overall dependence of the Internet and Social Media.
I never truly understand the extent of China’s social credit system and reading all of the articles about it truly does scare me. I believe that Western societies are closer to this ranking system than before realized. Social Media is taking over our lives, and our society cannot operate without it. Our online classes would not be sustainable or functioning if we did not have a mode to communicate online. Big Data is dominating our world and can fully have the capacity to rank users based on every action made online. Western societies have the means to implement this type of social credit system, and Big Data is surveillancing every action online without users realizing.
Works Cited
Kobie, Nicole. “The Complicated Truth about China’s Social Credit System.” WIRED, WIRED UK, 7 June 2019, www.wired.co.uk/article/china-social-credit-system-explained.
Fontaina, Jasmine. “Black Mirror: Nosedive Analysis.” Medium, Medium, 10 Dec. 2018, medium.com/@jfontaina/black-mirror-nosedive-analysis-1bc219e8bd13.
Botsman, Rachel. “Big Data Meets Big Brother as China Moves to Rate Its Citizens.” WIRED, WIRED UK, 21 Jan. 2019, http://www.wired.co.uk/article/chinese-government-social-credit-score-privacy-invasion.
