Bifurcated
Throughout the COVID-19 pandemic, Christo Hall and Stuart Leech monitored UK-based anti-lockdown and anti-vax Telegram channels that were rife with mis- and disinformation. In the detail of these conversations, we found references to scandals and events in British history that appeared to be colouring and evidencing suspicion of authorities’ pandemic responses.Bifurcated (bi4c8d) documents some of those events, focusing on institutional privacy, security and surveillance controversies.The project tries to understand how these events have contributed to the decline in institutional trust, and why the rabbit hole is overfowing.
Bifurcated is a mixed media photo- and data-journalism project that contains original and archival photography, data visualization, essays, video, interviews and experiments to creatively explore political events and personal stories. The project examines:• Policy and government rhetoric in response to 9/11;
• Government handling of personal data;
• Police use of facial recognition technologies;
• Public institutions' cyber defenses and individual harms caused by ransomware attacks.
stuart@stuartleech.com
hall.christo@pm.me