Monday, April 21, 2014

The #Selfie Generation

I recently read an article on ABC News about the new "selfie" obsession, which is very prevalent on social media these days. A day doesn't go by where multiple selfies pop up on my News Feed, and people are constantly taking photos of themselves. Whether it is for social media, personal messages, or for the Snapchat app, the users take multiple pictures until they are satisfied with their hair, makeup, pose, etc. The ABC article gives multiple examples of phone applications where people can even airbrush their bodies to look "perfect." What happens when people encounter the person instead of the picture; aren't they afraid of looking different or not measuring up?

Why are we so obsessed with selfies? Do we like the affirmation we get from the number of likes or comments? I think attention definitely is a contributing factor, and people feel like they are connected or admired by others if their pictures are acknowledged. Who doesn't want to be noticed? But it should be known that there are many other ways to get noticed by others, and Instagram photos don't have to fit the model form. There are so many different types of beauty to appreciate, and selfies without makeup should not be such a rarity.

This article opens up the discussion about editing advertisements or magazine photos of celebrities as well, but it comes down to how women are perceived through media and how the standard has become unattainable. This post won't be my first on the topic, but this article shined some light on our generations priorities.

If you want to read the article, click here.

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