Hiding Behind Screens: Deception by Social Media Influencers
Truth be told, the grand tale of people living their best lives and posting them on social media is a mere performance.
The rising influence of social media has regrettably pushed people to live on the web, hiding behind the screens. Eating out for a photo, traveling for a photo, squandering money for a photo — and it has become this dystopian society of deceit.
Studies have shown that people who frequently and/or intensely use social media tend to have a lower self-esteem or depressive symptoms, especially when seeing images of people “living the life.”
And while some people use social media as an outlet for a cause or to raise awareness, many others use it to showcase an unrealistic and deceiving scenario. Is the person we see on the screen the same person they say they are behind the screen?
When ‘likability’ suddenly became important
Using social media as an outlet to express yourself is acceptable. But when you allow social media to take over your life and become the definition of who you are as a person, it can be a bit concerning.
You are more likely to paint a false picture or narrative of a life you want others to think you have. You begin to form excuses and so-called ‘sacrifices’ of spending more money on aesthetics, paying more than what you’re receiving, to go above and beyond — but for what cause?
Most social media influencers try to make their lifestyle the goal for others. They have normalized certain things — wasting money and food, giving in to unsustainable consumption, and mindlessly encouraging status and ego gratification.
In its original series, Black Mirror, Netflix released an episode entitled Nosedive. Charlie Brooker, the writer and creator of Nosedive, describes the episode as a satire on acceptance and “the image of ourselves we like to portray and project to others.”
The main character of Nosedive, Lacie, has essentially lived her life trying to please everyone to get “higher social points.” She believes that her value as a human being equates to the value of her “points” or, in this case, “likes” in social media.
Many have fallen for the trap. People post things about themselves, that aren’t entirely true, thus allowing ‘followers’ and ‘friends’ to judge them for the lives that they want others to think they have.
Let’s take, for instance, a scenario where you’re out for lunch with a friend who deeply cares about his/her social presence. You’re starving. The food comes, and you just want to dig in. But your friend is taking a while, finding the best lighting and searching for the best angle. Minutes have passed, and they finally tell you to touch your food. Yet, their eyes are still glued to their device figuring out the best way to make the photo look aesthetically pleasing (so much for catching up).
It is a deception, and it is a practice that’s taken further by influencers in Instagram and YouTube, particularly those focused on fashion, travel and lifestyle blogging.
When influencers create content that showcases a luxurious and glamorous lifestyle, it can be menacing for others. They are called ‘influencers’ for a reason. It has proliferated, and it can be dangerous.
Encouraging people that they, too, can travel the world and see places does not really take into account that the only wealth some people have is to dream as they struggle to pay their next rent.
Inflating the truth
What even are ‘influencers’? A recent study from Olapic defines an influencer as someone with over 10,000 followers, whom brands engage with to help promote their products, services or messages, who shares information about products they love and who is an expert in their field — in this case, social media.
The study also reveals a central theme: authenticity. What makes a consumer trust an influencer? Do influencers use social media for profit? Do they promote things in dishonest ways? Are they sincere about their virtual engagements and interactions? How can they guarantee that the product their promoting is what they say it is?
While it has reached a point of no return, the return on investment, however, for a company who uses social media influencers to reach other consumers has improved. Although social media is a revolutionary innovation that allows online-users to share their thoughts, post photos and connect with others around the world, there is no hiding behind the screen that it can be toxic and perilous.
The Fyre Festival fiasco is a perfect example. The infamous event has been archived by two documentaries in both Hulu and Netflix. The biggest marketing tool that pushed the disaster? Social media.
Billy McFarland, the young entrepreneur who started it all, roped in high profile social media influencers and created an astounding media campaign that allured people into thinking that Fyre Festival would be the best event of the century.
“All advertising is premised on the selling of an idea but the efficiency with which social influencers inculcate inadequacy in their followers, then sell them products and experiences to fix their sad little lives, is creepier than anything that predates it,” says The Guardian’s Emma Brockes.
The whole debacle was indicative of two things 1) it is this easy for social media influencers to send any message to their followers, and 2) the power of people who promote a fantasy version of their lives is stronger than we think.
“Ridiculous,” people are saying on Twitter. Indeed, social media influencers will go through extreme measures such as buying an overpriced avocado toast and latte for a photo they didn’t get to eat or giving into manipulation because they rode a private yacht or sipped Mai Thai’s in a private island in the Bahamas for free — all in the name of content, personal image and entertainment.
Erin Vogel, a postdoc in the Department of Psychiatry at the University of California, San Francisco, studying social media and well-being, spoke with media outlet Salon.
“A lot of my research is based on this idea that people present selectively positive versions of themselves in social media — they’re talking more about the better aspect of their lives and making themselves seem like they’re having this great life, which can then lead other people to feel worse about themselves as a result.”
This is a no-brainer: on social media, people portray themselves in a way that they aren’t genuinely portrayed in real life. They deceive followers into thinking that this is the perfect life — a must-have or a life goal.
It is safe to assume that what you see on screen is not the same person behind the screen. People hide behind filters and presets to come up with the best quality and versions of themselves — sometimes, far from the truth.
