"You decide to take money for a dress? That's your choice. You decide to spend hours taking the right photo? That's your choice. You decide to live a life that you feel is a lie? That is absolutely your choice."
Nailed it. Social media is what you make it. Don't blame the degradation of your own values on social media/celebrity/the industry etc. It's a tool to communicate, and it's up to you how and what you use it for, whether it's to feed your insecurities, mess around, bolster a business, or share ideas.
I like how he points out that you should take ownership for your actions if you choose to go down that path. No one is forcing you to fake it on instagram, and there are many others who've found 'success' on instagram without sacrificing truth.
Ultimately, he and her are conveying the same conclusion. She gave into the allure of social media celebrity and the pressures of putting out the perfect photos for the likes and validation. She didn't like what it did to her, and is now using social media to communicate her new message (that it is not as picture perfect as it seems). It's the same way some celebs speak out against the nature of magazines - photoshopped photos, near anorexic diets, hours of styling - to look picture perfect for the masses.
It is still YOUR CHOICE how you choose to portray yourself. You can give into the system (and sometimes your values with it), or you can do/post what you think is right. Social media is what you make of it. It's supposed to be a tool, or you can let it consume you.
Let me be clear, that I don't have anything against people who decide to carefully curate picture perfect moments for their instagram. It takes a lot of effort. In fact, I prefer those over social media accounts that air out dirty laundry or try to garner sympathy points.
Original post:
Essena O’Neill is wrong; Social Media isn't a lie.
Social Media can be whatever the user desires it to be. Allowing yourself to become pressured into a false life that you're uncomfortable with is the result of your own actions and intent. The inability to define yourself, your life, your own sense of confidence comes from a lack of trying to understand yourself.
Blaming Social Media, calling it a lie, further shows your lack of attempt to understand yourself. Yes, deleting your Social Media is a step in the right direction. Disowning personal responsibility for your own happiness and shifting the blame is a step backwards.
I, and many others, have found a greater understanding of ourselves through our Social Media careers. The ability to explore unlimited opportunities, to create what our hearts desire, to speak with our own true voices. We found ourselves through Social Media because we made that choice to do so.
You decide to take money for a dress? That's your choice. You decide to spend hours taking the right photo? That's your choice. You decide to live a life that you feel is a lie? That is absolutely your choice.
Deciding to use Social Media as a tool to tell people Social Media is a lie contradicts that very same notion. Social Media is there to be used for the truth or for the lies. Essena O'Neil needs to find real help instead of redirecting personal responsibility towards mankind's greatest communication tool. I truly hope you do, because Social Media isn't a lie, you were the lie.
Backstory: http://magazine.good.is/articles/teen-trades-instagram-stardom-for-authentic-life
