Description
Book SynopsisIn a surveillance culture, the ubiquity of audio-visual recording devices has enabled the unprecedented documentation of private indiscretions, scandalous conversations, and obscene behaviors performed by both ordinary and high-profile people. From former President Donald J. Trump''s lewd banter on the infamous Access Hollywood video and leaked audio of celebrity racist tirades to outburst of violent hate speech posted daily to YouTube, contemporary media culture is awash in obscene performances of transgressive white masculinity. Such exposés are screened and viewed under the assumption that revealing secret prejudices will necessarily realize the promises of democracy and bring about a postracial and postfeminist future. This book addresses why the culture of public revelations has failed to hold the perpetrators accountable. Caught on Tape illustrates how public revelations constitute a symbolic and imaginary world for the public that is preoccupied with the obscene enjoyment of tra
Table of ContentsIntroduction: On Obscene Enjoyment 1. Leaked Celebrity Tirades and the Primal Scene of Racism 2. Anxiety, Racial Capitalism, and the Donald Sterling Tapes 3. YouRacist.com: The Libidinal Economy of Public Freak Out Videos 4. Access Hollywood and the Return of the Primal Father Epilogue: On Pointless Enjoyment Selected Bibliography Index
