On the way back from the Dendy Cinema at Circular Quay, a fight between two men broke out with about twenty spectators some of which were egging on the individuals involved. Whilst trying to keep out of their way, I phoned it in to the police via 000 who were on the scene in less than a minute (which is pretty quick I reckon). Three police vehicles turned up followed by a “Public Order Riot Squad” van some time later (I guess things might have gotten more serious after we had moved on).
What I noticed apart from spectators holding bottles of beer (in public) and cigarettes (which I disgust in public, not to mention when the butts are flicked on the ground or into the harbour) was that a few people were actually capturing video of the event in progress with their iPhones.
I found it quite alarming that these people were doing nothing to break up the fight (which is their choice I suppose) and filming the event without a second thought. What I think they may not have realised is that the video captured could be used as evidence by the police to identify and prosecute those involved in addition to having the phones seized to prevent the destruction of the evidence. Furthermore, photos and videos captured with the iPhone can also capture the corresponding GPS coordinates which may provide further information for the authorities.
I think it is sad that we have such antisocial behaviour in public but even worse that others encourage it to make their own version of “reality television”. I see no dignity in someone recording their mate get beaten to a pulp or beating up someone else. It serves nothing more but to propagate foolish behaviour and saddens me that technology is used in this way. Thankfully, the pendulum swings both ways and can help to uncover the sequence of events prior to the arrival of the authorities.
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