Keen On

Surveillance capitalism is ubiquitous. If we’re not being watched by Google or Facebook, then we are watching movies warning about how these digital platforms are watching us. David Donnelly’s new documentary, COST OF CONVENIENCE, trots all the familiar charges that we’ve heard over the years from KEEN ON guests like Shoshana Zuboff , Jaron Lanier, Nick Carr and Roger McNamee. It’s good stuff, I guess, even if we’ve heard these existential warnings many times before. The problem is what to do about it. Like most Silicon Valley critics, Donnelly’s fixes - from more education and regulation to greater self control - aren’t very realistic. Ultimately, I guess, we’ll find something else to worry about. The real question, however, is if we forget about the screen, will the screen forget about us? DAVID DONNELLY is an American filmmaker renowned for his impactful documentaries in the classical music realm, notably his award-winning debut, Maestro, featuring stars like Paavo Järvi, Joshua Bell, Hilary Hahn, and Lang