Hoth Takes #35: Wookiee1234!*

Recent Star Wars projects like Obi-Wan Kenobi and Andor have shown us the strengths and weaknesses of the Imperial surveillance state. But how effective are the Empire’s cameras, databases, and scanners, and how well do storytellers justify the failure of this technology to snare our heroes and stamp out the Rebellion? In this episode, Wired security reporter Lily Hay Newman joins Eric and Grace to discuss the depiction of surveillance in Star Wars. We discuss how the franchise has to adhere to its roots in the technological imagination of the 1970s, how the scale of the galaxy and the complexity of the Imperial bureaucracy might undermine an effective panopticon, and how mod parlors and other tricks can defeat surveillance. Plus, Grace and Eric offer some creative explanations for why Imperial security cameras aren’t constantly alerting Darth Vader to Luke Skywalker’s location.