Paris Hilton likens the sound of paparazzi cameras to the onomatopoeia of the word “gotcha gotcha gotcha”: in a world that places value on exploiting every single moment in our lives and putting it on social media, our attempts at attracting temporary attention or monetisation demonstrate an increasingly dystopian society where we are enslaved by our phones and the world’s most successful non-corporeal entity: the Internet.
Mom-tuber Ashley Embers addresses the issue of an increasingly narcissistic generation in her video Are we creating a generation of self-absorbed bullies? A combination of raising kids on iPads and gentle parenting philosophies has caused a complete flip in the power dynamics between parent and child. The child is now able to make demands and manipulate their caretakers into giving them what they want as shame and punishment is viewed as overly traumatising to the children’s growth. Furthermore, access to tablets and smartphones, with online learning during Covid exacerbating the problem of addiction, has stunted Gen-Alpha’s social skills and created increasingly self-isolated individuals. Without face-to-face interaction, they do not realise the weight that words carry and become hurtful and lacking in empathy.
It is not only the next generation that suffers the consequences of smartphone addiction. A few of my friends have public Instagram accounts off of which they are attempting to gain attention and money, while almost all of my old classmates and I are mutuals online. Regardless of the audience your account reaches or the age group you belong to, there is an inherent narcissism to being on social media. You turn your life into an aesthetic, cherry-picking the highlights so that your followers can see how well-off you’ve been. Even if they’re not physically there, the amount of eyes on you cause you to become performative in what you post. Miley Cyrus says in an interview by The Independent, “There’s a certain level of ego that has to play a part [in touring]. I think when you’re training your ego to be active every single night, it’s hard to turn it off. The relationship between you and other humans being subject and observer isn’t healthy for me, because it erases my humanity and my connection.” Yet, that’s what we put ourselves through every day without stop by being on social media: making ourselves the desirable subject that others must observe.
The relationship between you and other humans being subject and observer isn’t healthy for me, because it erases my humanity and my connection. (Miley Cyrus)
The transformation of oneself into a subject, especially a recognisable one, is almost a required path to success on social media. I run a Bookstagram account, but I don’t show my face and I don’t think I will anytime soon. For me, I see a lot of value in staying anonymous online and keeping certain parts of my life private. I do not want the scrutiny, and I don’t want the potential narcissism of transforming my body into a subject to overtake my life either.
Another phenomenon I find concerning is the death of originality and the tendency for burnout. Influencers are forced to fit into niches and molds, not just in relation to the content they are making but also in regards to their physique and mannerisms. Of course, there are always original and authentic creators out there who dare to be themselves (@chloe.longname is one of the most eccentric and creative users I follow), but the majority of my FYP is filled with white, size-0 girls marketing a life of nice dresses, Korean skincare, and endless summery food pics. The algorithm, it seems, favours whoever forsakes their need for privacy and whoever is willing to commit to one of the ever-growing selection of niches. With the never-ending need for content, creators also feel pressured to churn out reels and posts as often as they can, giving up quality me time and time spent with loved ones for social media instead. It is all too easy to become one’s own employer through social media and be pressured to stick to a certain standard of posting, creating, whatever you call it. The constant productivity leads to burnout, and burnout leads to depression. Depression may lead to coping mechanisms like—you guessed it—doom-scrolling. It’s a never ending hamster wheel they have us trapped in.
All my naysaying is purely introspective and done in hopes of promoting deeper thought with the way we are creating and engaging with content. The algorithm is important for success, but isn’t human connection with others and with oneself worth more at the end of the day? I’ve been observing my own habits lately, and know it is bad to spend so much time on Instagram with the excuse of ‘content research’—I’m frying my attention span as I speak. In an ideal world, we would all have deleted social media apps off our phones and gone outside to touch grass and chit-chat; but simply being more aware of what we consume and what we’re trying to tell audiences already is a significant improvement over hyper-fixating on a number game that leads ultimately to nothing.