While everyone else freaks out about cameraphones being used in gym locker rooms, Sean Savage explains what the big deal about cameraphones really is: that photos can be automatically stored on a central server somewhere, eliminating the need for massive amounts of storage in the camera; photos can be shared and published as they’re being taken; and that everyone will always have a camera on hand since most people carry their phone with them. We will quibble a bit with one of his points — that cameraphones also mean there is no way for government officials to prevent the transmission of photos across national boundaries — since we’d assume that an authoritarian state would probably also have some control over the cellular networks within their borders and thus be able to censor or otherwise filter what photos people send with their cameraphones. Look at how the Chinese government is already doing some monitoring and filtering of text messaging there.
