The story of the Coldplay couple unfolded like a soap opera. But was the pile-on that followed a proportionate response?

‘We live in a digital panopticon. Surveillance isn’t top-down any more, it’s lateral. It’s ambient and crowdsourced. It can come from your neighbour. A passerby. A stranger on their phone.’ Composite: TikTok

By now we’ve all seen the video: a couple locked in an intimate embrace at a Coldplay concert. Within milliseconds, the woman turns her face and the man ducks. The crowd gasps. Chris Martin quips: “Either they’re having an affair or they’re very shy.”

Within 24 hours, the internet had done what it does best: turned sleuth. The names of the pair were quickly revealed. LinkedIns found. Both were senior executives at a New York data firm, he, the CEO; she, the head of HR. Both married. With children.