Screening of movie Blow Out and discussion with Citizen Lab founder Ronald J. Deibert set for Sept. 24 at Fox Theatre

By ALAN SHACKLETON

A viewing of the film Blow Out and a talk by Beach resident and author Ronald J. Deibert on big tech surveillance is set for the Fox Theatre next week.

A University of Toronto professor and an Officer of the Order of Canada, Deibert is the founder and director of the university’s renowned Citizen Lab and also the author of a number of books on digital security and spying. His most recent book, Chasing Shadows , Cyber Espionage, Subversion, and the Global Fight for Democracy, will also be featured at the movie and discussion night on Wednesday, Sept. 24, at the Fox Theatre, 2236 Queen St. E., starting at 7 p.m.

The evening of film and talk is presented by The Great Escape Book Store on Kingston Road, and store owner Katya Nosko will moderate the discussion with Deibert after the film’s screening.

In an interview with Beach Metro Community News about the Fox Theatre event, Deibert said he’s always been a big fan of both The Great Escape Book Store and the iconic movie theatre since he first moved to the Beach area in 1996.

“The Fox is a wonderful place and a real community gem,” he said.

“Hopefully everybody can come and have some popcorn and see a great movie and then a great discussion with Katya and myself. I’ll be happy to talk about Citizen Lab and anything else.”

Deibert added that it’s no coincidence the movie being shown revolves around a political conspiracy. A 1981 thriller directed by Brian De Palma, Blow Out stars John Travolta as a movie sound technician who uncovers evidence of a political murder.

“I have a friend sent me an email and said I should talk to Katya about a film with surveillance themes and we decided to do Blow Out. I’m particularly interested in movies from the 1970s and early 1980s when I was growing up, especially around the theme of a lone individual who has uncovered something and investigates the conspiracy. And it usually doesn’t end well.”

And while Hollywood has its takes on political conspiracy, corporate espionage and corrupt governments, Deibert’s work with Citizen Lab has made him acutely aware of the very real dangers of digital surveillance and intelligence gathering by companies and governments.

“The digital communications ecosystem we inhabit provides an ideal breeding ground for the flourishing of privatized covert operations,” writes Deibert in Chasing Shadows. “Many people around us now live in a never-ending tsunami of conspiracies, fake news, and half-truths that leave them cynical and disengaged from civic life.”

Deibert told Beach Metro Community News that many people are becoming disengaged from not just politics and their own local democracies, but also from the communities they call home and they simply throw up their hands when they hear about abuses of power by corporations and governments.

“Some people are concerned, but some unfortunately and understandably are tuning out and they can’t face it. They can’t stand to turn on the news as it’s a relentless assault on the basic norms of democracy,” he said.

“But if we want to preserve our individual democracy, we have to stand up for it.”

One way of protecting our democracy is to be aware of the work being done by U of T’s Citizen Lab and other similar organizations involved in digital security research. Deibert said we all need to be aware that we can be spied on digitally for business and political reasons, and that there are powerful and secretive forces seeking to sway our actions and attack our democracies and freedoms.

“Social media, a technology designed and once widely heralded for providing citizens with freedom of speech and liberty, has now become a major source of insecurity and division,” he writes in Chasing Shadows. “Our mission at the (Citizen) Lab has always been to uncover risks to human rights in the digital sphere, and this exploitation of the digital communications ecosystem will make our task even more challenging.”

For more information on the Sept. 24 movie and discussion, including how to purchase tickets, please go to https://www.foxtheatre.ca/movies/surveillance-night-event-blow-out-w-ronald-deibert/