Ah, selfies and social media. We love you but you’re sometimes just crazy.
What are the odds Kathleen Hanna, a riot grrrl and feminist icon, wants to collaborate with Miley Cyrus, a former Disney star? Seems unlikely, right? But, Miley has changed her former tween star image. Looking through her Instagram, you can see how she’s carefully crafted a new outspoken ‘bad girl’ image. It’s exactly what landed her in this situation and made her so famous. Her pictures scream ‘I do what I want and I’ll do it the way that I want to’. She’s using Instagram to portray herself in that certain way, and in a way we’re all the same.
Facebook and Instagram have become platforms for us to construct the image of ourselves we want to portray. It’s not just any image – it’s the perfect, ‘photoshopped’ version of you. We filter out the things we don’t like and enhance the things we do. You choose what you want people to see – where you are, what you wear, who you hang out with. There is this idea that this brings about a huge digital wave of personal empowerment – yet I am hesitant to agree.
A recent study by Dove suggested that 82% of women believe that social media has affected the definition of beauty. There is this constant fascination with ‘thinspiration’ pages. Quite frankly those are bodies most of us will never have, yet women drool over that ‘perfection’. But, looking at the white teeth perfect hair selfies, we fail to realise the shot was probably one out of 150. It’s likely also been edited into oblivion. Apps that make us instantly lose 10 pounds and apps that remove spots we’ve spent hours attempting to cover up. In a way it’s a bit funny – think of Jenna Marbles! – but really it’s rather demoralising.
But can we actually present ourselves the way that we want to? Scout Willis was recently banned from the Instagram community after posting a picture of her wearing a sheer top. In response to this she decided to walk around New York topless for the day. After all, it seems wrong that what is made legal by New York state law is so outlawed on social media. It’s hard to imagine but in the 1930’s, a man being topless was just as taboo as it was for a women today.
In 2013, photographer Petra Collins’ saw her account banned after posting a bikini picture with pubic hair showing. We’re told to fit in with the norm and the message here is that an unaltered woman is unacceptable. Her photo didn’t go against the terms and conditions of Instagram. It was no more revealing than any one of the endless beach babe pictures there. Yet someone reported it, yet it was removed. Why? Because it didn’t match with what – society’s definition of femininity?
It is true that we can try to portray ourselves the way they want to, but it seems a lot of what we show is far from the truth. It’s just what we want people to see. It’s an attempt to be the people with perfect hair and bodies. It’s living the perfect life. Not all make their social media profiles as out there as Miley Cyrus, but it’s hardly the accurate portrayal. It just seems that the unaltered versions of us simply aren’t cool or beautiful enough for the world of social media. We just have to squeeze ourselves into the norm.
It is true that a picture attracts a lot more attention than words, and attention is often what leads to power. This is why more credit should go to the likes of Collins and Willis. they’re the ones going against the norm, attempting to get acceptance the way we are – unaltered.
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