TW – this article discusses body dysmorphia and eating disorders
Photo editing software was once something reserved for magazine covers or the select few who could navigate the awkwardness of Photoshop. Even in the very early years of social media, selfie culture seemed far more innocent. It often meant choosing from a variety of hue-imbued filters, with names like ‘Valencia’ and ‘Nashville’. But in the years that followed, selfie culture quickly advanced into something more – most notably after the birth of editing apps.
The dangers of social media
Snapchat’s development of real-time filters in 2015 seemed to be a significant moment in the world of social media. These filters sketched out an early blueprint for the phenomenon that came to be known as ‘Instagram face’. These ‘pretty’ filters always showed a different version of the same face: longer eyelashes, flawless skin, a smaller nose, and fuller lips. The accessibility of such face-enhancing software, for many, became impossible to resist. Selfies without filters could leave you feeling vulnerable, grappling with the fear that the real you might not perform as well.
The rise in such software was already, at best, worrisome for a generation of kids that voted ‘social media influencer’ and ‘Youtuber’ as the second and third most popular choices for what they wanted to be when they grew up. Particularly as recent years have seen an exponential rise in young girls developing poor mental health, often taking shape in disorders such as body dysmorphia. In such a landscape, it was only inevitable that being able to dramatically alter your looks in just a few clicks would cause an avalanche of problems.
“PrettyUp is a kick in the teeth for the progressive women working hard to normalise features that the beauty world has deemed undesirable.”
More worrying still, since the outbreak of the pandemic, the average user’s relationship with social media has become even more co-dependent. The Brandon agency reported: “For Gen Z, social media has lessened the loneliness of isolation (65%), 61% among Millennials. Some students and those just joining the workforce can’t maintain or build relationships in person. Social media and video conferencing have become the lifeline.”
Of course these figures are unsurprising, given humans – by their very nature – crave sociability, and right now, the online world is the closest we can get to satisfying that craving. Such feelings have led to a surge in popularity amongst video-creation apps like TikTok that offer temporary spells of relief from dreary lockdown life through short bursts of video entertainment. Consequently, a new kind of influencer culture has emerged; that is, a culture grounded in the video format.
Video is the new Photoshop
This rise in video-based influencing has likely left many creators unsure of how to hop on the bandwagon without exposing a lack of synergy between their online selves and their ‘IRL’ selves. Facetune might offer editing for photos and ‘selfie’ videos, but the technology for bodily manipulation in videos isn’t there yet. That is, until PrettyUp.
PrettyUp is a new editing app that allows you to edit facial features and body features in both photos and videos – from narrowing hips to elongating legs, PrettyUp facilitates the projection of impossible standards in real-time. This new tech development is a sad step backwards for body positivity movements, the likes of which have pushed for the diversification of body representation in the clothing industry and actively encouraged a decrease in modified photos in the media at large. Ultimately, PrettyUp is a kick in the teeth for the progressive women working hard to normalise features that the beauty world has deemed undesirable.
“When the use of tech such as this becomes imperceptible, so does the already shaky line between reality and illusion.”
But the reality is, PrettyUp – and the inevitable copycats that will follow in its wake – is a dangerous development for the world of social media, especially for young women. Celebrities such as Kendall Jenner have already been called out for acting irresponsibly with the careless use of such technology. However, the real problem isn’t when these slip-ups are evident, like in Jenner’s case, it’s when they’re not; when the use of tech such as this becomes imperceptible, so does the already shaky line between reality and illusion. Without it, the health of young women becomes increasingly threatened and the ammunition for body dysmorphia and eating disorders increases.
What’s worse, we’re living in a time where physical social interaction is either limited or non-existent. In this situation, the boundary between illusion and reality is almost entirely obscured. The absence of real-world connection paired with this new technology is a one-way ticket to an unstoppable body image crisis amongst young people.
“we may not be able to control what others post, but we can control the posts we choose to see”
As a young woman myself, I navigated the toxicity of many online beauty trends while growing up, yet the development of such sophisticated tech has actually left me feeling lucky – a rare thing for a girl who came of age in the noughties and tens. If I’d had access to something like PrettyUp throughout my teen years, I’m not sure how healthy my relationship with my body-image would be right now.
Protecting young women from the unreality of video manipulation is integral in the fight for body acceptance and restored self-esteem in social media users. We may have limited options at present, but they’re certainly not absent altogether. When speaking to Kitty Wallace, head of operations at the Body Dysmorphic Disorder Foundation, she stressed the importance of using this time to “curate your social media feed so that you are seeing less harmful images and gaining a better perspective of human variation”. Social media curation is one of the most effective methods you can employ to safeguard your self-esteem right now – we may not be able to control what others post, but we can control the posts we choose to see. Use that power and remember, as Kitty says: “No human is perfect and beauty comes in many different packages.”
If you’re struggling with any of the issues discussed in this article, the Body Dysmorphic Disorder Foundation has resources available on their website at https://bddfoundation.org/helping-you/getting-help-in-the-uk/
Jenny Medlicott
Image courtesy of Ivan Oboleninov from Pexels. This image has in no way been altered. Image license is available here.
Jenny Medlicott
Jenny is a 21 year old student who's in her final year of studying English at the University of Exeter. She's a journalist who loves to write about all things politics, international affairs and social justice causes.