The Hidden Surveillance Network Spreading Across America

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Jessica Burbank is an investigative journalist, content creator, and host of The Jessica Burbank Show. Her reporting for Drop Site News and The Counterprogramming Club has exposed the rapid spread of Flock Safety, a multi-billion-dollar surveillance company whose license plate readers and camera networks are being adopted by police departments and municipalities across the country.

Burbank joined Current Affairs associate editor Emily Topping to discuss how Flock’s technology works, why communities often learn about it only after contracts are approved, how surveillance data can be abused by law enforcement, and what ordinary people should know before their towns embrace a mass surveillance system.

📸 Jessica's YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@JessicaBurbankShow

📸 Jessica's Substack: https://substack.com/@kaburbank

0:00-9:07 What Is Flock Safety?

9:07-16:19 Why Should We Be Concerned?

16:19-20:26 Efforts to Prevent Surveillance Abuse

20:26-25:00 The Gymnastics Studio Case

25:00-26:41 ICE and Data Sharing

26:41-28:50 Why Local Police Departments Embrace This Tech

28:50-34:24 What About Communities That Want This Tech?

34:24-37:01 The Ideological Fault Lines

37:01-44:03 Lawsuits Against Flock

44:03-50:03 Are You Being Watched?

50:03-59:21 The Broader Implications of Surveillance Cameras

59:21-1:02:08 What to Consider Before Implementing This Tech

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