Podcast 4 - Gone Phishing

A Podcast about possible Black Mirror Episodes.

Here are my pitches.

First, an episode called “Drive” which follows a former influencer protagonist and a murderous self-driving car. The protagonist was an influencer whose views and followers kept dropping. Desperate to regain her fame, she accepts a brand deal from a smart car company. In her smart car, she starts ubering to make money and she vlogs her rides. She hopes this is her comeback, but it might just be her downfall. After making a joke about getting “rid” of an annoying passenger, her car becomes out of her control. The next day the annoying passenger she was joking about is found missing. The car is missing dashcam footage. She’s conflicted between wanting her fame to stick and doing what is right and just.

My other pitch is for an episode called “Animal Farm.” In this episode, it follows a protagonist who grew up on a farm, where her parents still live. She visits them often, but now lives in the city. The new technological craze is an implant that allows you to put surveillance technology within an animal. Originally, it is meant for people to use as a safety precaution, to make sure their homes aren’t broken into while they’re away. Soon, Governments use the technology on farm animals and pigeons to surveil the public. The lines of reality start to blur and no one knows what can be trusted and what cannot be. There’s a scene of a cat and a pigeon where they fight and the pigeon loses its camera eye. The protagonist starts to see the increase of technology from her neighbors. She then starts to see pigeons with the technology implemented and starts to grow very cautious of everything going on around her. Protests begin and the stakes become heightened as there is more and more pushback from the public. The government does not budge. She goes to visit her family farm for a weekend retreat but becomes weary of every animal on the farm and starts to question who and what is safe. Eventually, the animals start to push back, as well and it ends with riots breaking out against The animals and the general public push back against the government.

There are social implications such as a lack of trust between one another and the general public versus the government. There are ethical issues with an invasion of privacy. There are regulatory challenges because the implants may be sold/traded illegally. It would also be increasingly more difficult as the technology spread to keep track of where it was and who had it.

Positive News Headline: Company Transparency Finally Achieved

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