Critical Analysis of Joshua Quittner’s “Invasion of Privacy”

Critical Analysis of Joshua Quittner’s “Invasion of Privacy”

Senay Boran

ENGL135Z

By Vince Goff

7 October, 2003


Goff 1
Critical Analysis of Joshua Quittner’s “Invasion of Privacy”
Joshua Quittner, in his Aug 25th, 1997 Time Magazine article entitled, “Invasion of Privacy”, attempts to get us to “lighten up” on being overly concerned about our privacy. Quittner, a journalist, frequent contributor to Newsday and Wired, and news director for Pathfinder.com, admits to willingly giving up some privacy in the name of security, convenience and improved service; and he believes that we are just as “ambivalent” about it as he is. Quittner is not entirely successful in his attempt to get us to lighten up. In fact, he probably has the opposite of the desired effect in many readers. Quittner increases awareness, and frightens with examples, inadvertently making readers even more paranoid about their privacy.
Mr. Quittner states that at first he, �...