Edward Snowden revealed that the US government is capable to spy on any conversations over the phone, email and internet usage. And as allied nations, the US government also spies on almost every governments in NATO. Chinese government also filters sensitive contents on internet and monitors individual internet access extensively since it is legal for authority to spy on the expression and limit the freedom of it. Once individuals or media post some issues that are not proper for the government, the issues would be removed in a short time and never shows again, which is similar to Winston's job in the Minitru. At the time when Urumqi, the capital city of Xinjiang Province of China, was attacked by terrorists, Chinese government locked down the whole province. There's no internet access, and the mobile devices of every individual are under extreme close surveillance in order to track down anyone who dares to have any intentions that are against the government. "Government is watching you." This is kind like Big Brother. Moreover, people today choose to highly expose their lives publicly on social media, therefore everybody can spy or be spied on anybody with technology.
Throughout the history, authorities, including democratic countries, have been constantly trying to distort the reality in order to prevent from being overthrown. "Freedom is the freedom to say that two plus two make four. If that is granted, all else follows." (1) Winston once wrote this in his journal. Under the totalitarian governance of the Party, anything the Party claims to be the truth automatically become the truth. One may say we would definitely speak up with our better judgment because there can be only one absolute truth in this world. However, when human beings are under pressure, many of us will obey the authority out of fear. In 1984, there's an unspoken rule among party members that they have to behave orthodoxly, or they will be vaporized as if they have never existed in this world.