The changing of technology has shaped society because communication between individuals is easier than ever. This has also changed the dynamics of war and adds an element of caution to ones code of conduct. ‘War Porn’ is an image or video taken during a significant time of war by a soldier, civilian or professional photographer. ‘War Porn’ has become much more common in today’s wars because of how society and culture in America is fascinated with pictures and social media. Instagram, Facebook, YouTube and other popular websites and apps are what many young Americans enjoy to do with their spare time. In turn, those young adults serving in the military have the same mindset and are inclined to take and share images with others.
In the future, ‘War Porn’ will have a major impact on the dynamics of war and armed conflicts. Soldiers and civilians have such easy access to technology that more and more can be documented than ever before. We have already seen how this can have negative effects with the case of the Abu Ghraib prison guards. Soldiers will now have to be extremely cautious with every action they take because it is much more likely now that they will be caught and exposed for doing something wrong. Soldiers will most likely continue to step out of line and will be caught; therefore the military will have to enact new rules and procedures for dealing with ‘War Porn’ and controversial photographs.
I found it interesting that Baudrillard made a comment about the Abu Ghraib prison guards. She said America was attacked and powerless after September 11th and that in turn caused the guards to assert their power over the helpless prisoners. I agree with her statement because emotions ran high and the United States was under a lot of pressure to find Saddam. They had to act with a sense of urgency and torture was the best way to obtain information and make progress; in their minds. What those soldiers did was wrong however, things like that happened all throughout the world during this time yet Abu Ghraib was the only place exposed because of the use of photographs and ‘War Porn’.
Photos like this will come out more often in the future and will spark controversy with the general public
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