I guess a lot of people fell for this Youtube hoax:
http://blog.wired.com/27bstroke6/2009/02/dtv-converters.html"In a 90-second video that's popping up on tin-foil-hat sites everywhere, 28-year-old software engineer Adam Chronister is seen cracking open his government-subsidized Magnavox converter, and revealing to the world the tiny video camera and microphone hidden inside.
"I had a friend who was trying to tell me that they put cameras in these things," Chronister narrates in a deadly-serious monotone. "So what I did was open it up to prove them wrong, and lo and behold ... this thing does in fact have both a camera and a microphone. " His finger points at a small lens attached to a transformer in the guts of the unit. "
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"In an interview with Threat Level, Chronister admits the whole thing was a hoax, concocted in about five minutes with a hot glue gun and parts from an old cell phone. The reaction surprised even him.
"I was listening to the Alex Jones show ... and I heard him mention the video," Chronister says. "I just about fell out of the shower." (Jones
Chronister says the video is partially true: A friend really did share the rumor about hidden camera in the DTV converters. "I originally opened up the device with the intention of proving him wrong," says Chronister. "At which point the thought popped in my head, wouldn't it be funny if I proved him right instead?" "
"They don't have to make televisions that watch us - they already make televisions that WE WATCH." -Rev. Ivan Stang.