As you know I was invited to
<http://www.monochrom.at/english/2008/07/reminder-monochrom-google-talk.htm>give
a Google Talk at the Google Campus in Mountain View -- and in fact I
did a 45 minute lecture performance on July 15. I decided to talk
about "Context Hacking: Some Examples of How to Mess with Art, the
Media System, Law and the Market" (a talk I already presented at
ETech 2008 and various other cons) and it went really well. It got
great feedback from attending folks.
Well, I waited for the talk to appear on Google's YouTube stream. And
waited. And waited. People actually sent me emails and asked me if I
faked the Google Talk. Faking a Google Talk? Oh my, no.
What could be taking them so long?
I asked a friend at Google and it seems a director in the Global
Communications and Public Affairs office does not think the content
of my talk is appropriate for uploading to YouTube. Quote: "Given the
level of profanity, sexual content, and shocking images in it, I do
not think it is appropriate for the Google Tech Talks channel on YouTube."
Oh wow.
I guess I briefly mentioned our conference
<http://www.monochrom.at/arse-elektronika>Arse Elektronika, our
international conference dealing with sex and technology. Well yes:
that's uuhmm kinda "sexual". But what's the shocking images? Maybe
<http://www.monochrom.at/mouse-over-matter/>Toetse? And what about
the profanity? Using the terminus "fuckin'"? Or was it to profane to
mention that the Google Campus architecture looks like a neoliberal
version of Logan's Run? Or the
<http://laughingsquid.com/monochrom-blf-the-great-firewall-of-china-at-google/>fence
thing?
The irony: part of my talk is dealing with the hard struggle to
subvert and provoke in an societal late capitalist environment that
actually wants you to be subversive and provocative. Maybe I proved
myself semi-wrong...
Anyways... if you want to see the video I suggest to send Google's
Global Communications and Public Affairs office an
<http://www.google.com/contact/>email and ask for a CD. Or better
yet, send a handwritten letter with your return address (snail mail
freaks techies out) to: Google, Global Communications and Public
Affairs, 1600 Amphitheatre Parkway, Mountain View.
Cheers!
