Instagram has created a false reality for women where the
ideal body is only obtainable through photo manipulation.
Since 2015, photo-editing apps like Facetune and Lightricks
have accumulated over 100
million downloads and active subscribers. These pocket-sized photoshops
have risen in popularity due to Instagram’s visual culture of self-images and
their association with digital
identity. Their interfaces are optimized for selfie and portrait
manipulation. Users can smooth, slim, brighten, and hide insecurities in an
instant.
Smoothing your complexion and sliming your waste seem subtle
enough that no one could notice. If no one notices, there is no harm done. However,
according to Harry Frankfurt’s philosophy on truth lies, and bullshit, any
attempt to mask the truth is detrimental to our perception of reality. In the
case of subtle photo manipulation on Instagram, the harm is seen in adolescent girls’
self-esteem and mental health.
A recent study
found girls ages 14-18 are unlikely to detect image manipulation on Instagram. In
fact, they are more likely to rate retouched images more positively and find
them more realistic. Part of this is due to the accessibility of photo-editing
apps like Facetune and Lightricks because photo manipulation is no longer limited
to celebrities and models. It is accessible to their peers.
The common practice of manipulated images by non-influential
users has normalized an unrealistic body ideal that is impossible to achieve.
As a result, teenage girls face negative body-image and high image consciousness
which puts them at higher
risk for eating disorders, depression, and other mental illnesses.
Photo manipulation by peers on Instagram illustrates the
dangers created by an altered perception of reality described by Frankfurt. No
matter the extent of the edit, it is not the truth. Instagram users must be conscious
of the role they play in fabricating this false reality with an impossible body
ideal or else they risk damaging the health of others.
This post is a great example of the consequences users face offline based on their behavior online. I found it interesting that you put responsibility on instagram users for modifying photos and see it as a contribution to the increasingly impossible beauty standards we hold ourselves to. On the one hand, I agree that altering your visual image to appear more appeal does fit into Frankfurt's definition of bullshit. On the other hand, however, I'm not sure that the whole weight of responsibility falls to the individual user. I think beauty standards are a broader systemic problem that involves celebrity and media representations as well as the social media of an average user. When it comes to visual bullshit and beauty standards, where does the brunt of ethical responsibility truly fall?
ReplyDeleteThe topic of your article is really interesting. You did a great job hooking in the reader and keeping their attention. I like that you included an outside study to relate to your topic. One thing that I think could be improved on is keeping the post centered around the readings, and using your topic as more of an example. Other than that great job!
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