Social media is a growing industry that generates revenue largely through advertisements. This growth of media in society is evident in the multiple users of networking sites such as Instagram, Facebook, Twitter, Snapchat, etc. Teenagers, especially, seem to have surrounded their everyday thoughts to capturing their profiles in an attractive perspective by the usage of selfies. Selfies have become more and more popular in the 21st century, evolving with more ways to capture one’s face with a click of a button, such as the selfie stick. Such evolution of results in media profiles revolves only around one’s body and face image. Increasingly more, people are starting to care about their certain “reputation” on these sites, resulting in negative emotions and conflicting personalities. Does our online persona display our true selves?
Most users go on social media, for exactly that reason: to go on social media. They usually don’t have a purpose behind their browsing, but to see what other people are doing and saying. This addiction can be very dangerous, in terms of psychological standards, because it can undergo harmful changes to people’s self-esteem and outlook on life. Not only does it make them insecure, but more self-conscious of how their public profile appeals to the media, causing a growing desire to become the center of attention. To gain that attention, social media is used as a platform for showing off popularity, health, beauty, etc. This narrows down their focus to publicize certain body parts, or certain people to grow in their media popularity.
To be a narcissistic means to perpetually be looking for positive affirmations, from other people and yourself. Narcissistic people may seem to be more confident and less insecure than those who are not, but could also use that to mask their large insecurity. It seems as if the media has become solely for what others would like to see on their screens, resulting in the numbers of tweets and likes behind a post. It diminishes the idea for photography to be actually appreciated in real life, and instead encourages more appreciation to take place behind the screen. This influences the teenage generation to keep up with creating a positive impression through technology. You can almost think of likes as a piece of candy. Everyone likes candy, and when you give your brother 5 dollars for all their Kit-Kats they collected from trick-or-treating, you’re trying to figure out what ways you could get the rest of his collection. In the same way, you trade in your picture for your followers’ viewing pleasure, while receiving their likes for your viewing pleasure. All the more, wondering how you will get more the next time around. This ongoing cycle, not only narrows users’ views on reality but hinders them from concentrating on their inward behavior and emotions in a personal manner.
