By J.S. Lane

The amateur has none of this. The amateur thinks their phone is a shield. It is not. It is a beacon. It says to the world: I am recording this. I am the memory. Come at me. None of this is an argument for putting down the camera. The world needs witnesses. But if you are going to document reality, you must do so with the same respect you would give a loaded firearm.

You might think the First Amendment (or free speech protections in other countries) has your back. You would be half right. In public spaces, in most Western democracies, you have a broad right to record anything in plain view. Police officers, politicians, and strangers have no reasonable expectation of privacy on a public sidewalk.