Tiny surveillance drones that hover and stare. An Internet where every keystroke is recorded. The automated government inspection of hundreds of millions of e-mails for suspicious characteristics. The technological advancements spurred by the computing revolution have improved our lives, but have also diminished our privacy and enhanced the government’s power to monitor us. Writers and directors who have grappled with technology’s mixed blessings join civil liberties advocates to discuss ways of preserving our freedom in an era in which we all dwell in Bentham’s Panopticon—a prison that allows our wardens to observe us at all times without being seen themselves.  For more information: http://www.pen.org/viewmedia.php/prmMID/6444/prmID/2206

The Eighth Annual PEN World Voices of International Literature
New York City, April 30-May 6, 2012

*Martin Amis, Margaret Atwood, Paul Auster, Michael Cunningham, E. L. Doctorow, Jennifer Egan, Aleksandar Hemon, Etgar Keret, Tony Kushner, Philipe Levine, Claire Messud, Herta Müller, Francine Prose, Salman Rushdie, Luc Sante, Marjane Satrapi, Sonia Sanchez, Ludmilla Ulitskaya, Kronos Quartet, Elevator Repair Service, *and many more -- 100 writers from 25 nations convene in New York to celebrate the power of the written word in action. Engage with literature in bold and unexpected ways and discover how words can be amplified through music, theater, puppetry, film, and much more. The program features performances, discussions, one-on-one conversations, and readings at venues crisscrossing the city, from Harlem to Wall Street, including the festival hubs -- The Standard, New York; The Standard, East Village; and the High Line. 

www.pen.org/festival