Glass man identity: from Big Brother to COVID passport

Abstract

This article will investigate the communication problems creating cultural identity and saving private space in the era of QR-codes and vaccination passports, in which every step offline and click online is recorded and stored in databases. The author proposes using the metaphor of the Glass Man to explain the status of the current cultural identification process. The term has come from medical terminology, where it means »imperfect osteogenesis«, a condition when bones are weak and unable to provide the necessary level of support. The body lacks the stamina and resistance required to function properly. The identity of Glass Man means transparency by default on the one hand, but fragility on the other. The Glass Man is a person without the need to hide anything. Nothing to hide, nothing to be ashamed of – it is a new mode of communication, with no taboos or ethical limits applying to topics of conversation. The Glass Man identity also means transparency, not just for the individual but also for the corporation acting in the mediated public space. The Chinese social credit system can serve as a good example of how social control disciplines citizens and increases levels of social control. We can hide something about ourselves from other users, but not from service owners. The Glass Man identity means a new type of human, a new type of balance between control and power. Glass Man means a person who does not need to hide anything. It is a new mode of both communication and power. Big Brother is no longer merely a metaphor or a reality TV show. This is a »brave new world«, and most likely our new reality.