And again the running man... The title of the story is a typical play on words for Wolfe. "Viewpoint" - point of view - is film slang for the point of view.

"Point of View" was written for Al Sarrantonio, who paid a lot of money for the story "My Hat is a Tree." Have you seen reality shows on television? Every time I watch them, I am amazed at their unreality. The participants have to pretend not to notice the cameras, director and crew, while we know very well that they can see them. However, they are here for the money, and if they have even the slightest hope of getting it, they must follow the rules of the game. Al needed a sci-fi story for his new book, and I tried to figure out a way to make the reality show real, with real guns and a real government chasing money. Gene Wolfe, from the introduction to Starwater Strains