None of Your Damn Business: Privacy in the United States from the Gilded Age to the Digital Age

Capello investigates why we have been so blithe about giving up our privacy and all the opportunities we have had to rein it in. He reveals that the problem is not that data will be used in ways we dont want, but how willing we have been to have our information used, abused, and sold back to us.

Format: Paperback / softback
Length: 352 pages
Publication date: 10 June 2022
Publisher: The University of Chicago Press

Capello delves into the compelling question of why we have been so complacent in surrendering our privacy and the numerous opportunities we have had to rein it in. It is alarming to note that Americans routinely surrender their personal information to entities purporting to have their best interests at heart. This trade-off has been accepted as a given for a long time, but the true extent of its nefariousness has only recently become apparent. As Lawrence Cappello exposes in his book, None of Your Damn Business, the issue lies not in the potential misuse of data but rather in our willingness to have our information exploited, abused, and sold back to us.

Capello takes readers on a journey through 130 years of US history, highlighting key moments when privacy played a central role in battles over journalistic freedom, national security, surveillance, big data, and reproductive rights. He makes a disheartening revelation that Americans have had numerous opportunities to protect the public good while simultaneously safeguarding their information, yet they have consistently squandered these opportunities.

None of Your Damn Business is a comprehensive and thought-provoking exploration of a topic that becomes increasingly relevant with each new outrage of trust betrayed. It serves as a stark reminder of the importance of safeguarding our personal information and the need to be vigilant in protecting our rights and freedoms.

Dimension: 229 x 152 x 23 (mm)
ISBN-13: 9780226819952