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Komaldeep Kaur

8167182

ENG 3170A

Professor Moreland

April 5, 2019

Social Media: Not All Negative

Over time as the world has made advances in technology, people have also made

advances in self-representation and how they go about representing themselves in the world.

Today, social media allows for people to represent themselves not only through pictures and

words but also through emotions; like the ability to express an emotion instead of just a “like” on

Facebook posts. The development of social media has altered the way in which we represent

ourselves to the world, but it is not as negative as most people seem to think. Nancy Thumim

discusses self-representation and the definitions of ordinary people and their applicability within

society and self-representation in her chapter on “Histories of Self-Representation.” In turn, this

touches on which category ordinary people fall under when they use social media for

self-representation. Jill Rettberg also explores how social media allows us to create visual

portraits of ourselves that we can publish for broader audiences to see allowing for true

self-representation in her chapter on “Written, Visual and Quantitative Self-Representations.”

Social media can be a place where true representation does not exist, but in most cases it is a

space for individuals to represent themselves and who they are, or who they want to be;

specifically on the platform Instagram. Twenty-first century social media users have become
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adept at using technology, and most have grown up with the latest technology in their hands or

readily available. This makes it so that the use of social media for self-representation is almost

inevitable. An persons reliance on social media as a form of self-representation is under constant

critique by others who lack the understanding that social media may in fact be pertinent for

representation in the daily life of an average social media user.

Thumim sets the basis of this argument with her definitions of ordinary people, and there

are both positives and negatives to her points. When looking at Instagram specifically, there are

two definitions of ordinary people that fit best with the topic of self-representation on social

media. In his first definition Coudry defines persuasion as the: “...division between ‘media

worlds’ and ‘ordinary worlds’” (Couldry 2000). He suggests that the term “‘ordinary people’

operates not only to denigrate, but also to categorize and contain” (Thumim 21), and this may be

true. However, “on the other hand, ‘ordinary people’ unites people as a group in distinction to

those who are not ‘ordinary’ and thus the term actually marks difference” (Thumim 23). Both of

these definitions are highly possible to execute through social media, but the first, where

“ordinary people” denigrates, can only succeed to exist if there is divise action taken by the users

of the different social media platforms; however, this is not the case, as most social media

platforms attempt to foster a positive atmosphere and space for their users. One of the prominent

discussions surrounding self-representation on social media circles around policies and

regulations in place by the platforms which police what can and can not be posted. Due to

controversy over so many topics in today’s time, most social media platforms offer

comprehensive guidelines for their users to know what they can and can not post online. Two of

the most prominent platforms include Instagram and Facebook—the former owned by the latter
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now—have summary and in-depth sections on their sites for their policies on posting (which

have not changed since their merging). Instagram says in their “short” that they:

“want Instagram to continue to be an authentic and safe place for inspiration and

expression. Help [them] foster this community. Post only your own photos and videos

and always follow the law. Respect everyone on Instagram, don’t spam people or post

nudity” (Instagram Help Centre).

Facebook has a similar but different summary, they say that:

“...people come to Facebook to share their stories, see the world through the

eyes of others and connect with friends and causes...We recognise how important it is for

Facebook to be a place where people feel empowered to communicate, and we take our

role in keeping abuse off our service seriously...The goal of our Community Standards is

to encourage expression and create a safe environment. We base our policies on input

from our community and from experts in fields such as technology and public safety”

(Community Standards).

Both Instagram and Facebook recognize that their platforms are a space for users to feel

safe, share and express their stories, and be authentic. Both companies encourage their users to

express themselves in a safe environment. At the root of it all, these companies encourage

self-representation which in turn is filtered through to their users. These actions lead to the

cultivation of Thumim’s second definition that unites people as groups. Although this definition

also outlines difference with some people and whether they fall into the ordinary category or not,

this will always happen. Society is created with multiple hierarchies where people who have

more money or are more famous stand out amongst the crowd, and this is okay when people who
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are defined as ordinary are grouped together with these others as the outliers rather than the other

way around. The policies on Instagram and Facebook create a safe space where people can unite

in order for them to fit in and represent who they are among the rest of society.

Even Rettberg agrees that “with digital cameras, smart phones, and social media it is

easier to create and share our self-representations” (2). Social media allows for an easier and

faster way for us to represent ourselves to others. Rettberg further develops the concept that not

only does social media help us represent ourselves but “sometimes we use the mediation of

technology to help us see ourselves better, to understand ourselves or to improve ourselves, or

simply to imagine someone to speak to...Other times we want to share our experiences with

others” (2). This especially harps on the usage of social media by small business owners to

promote their products. Not all businesses are able to afford the high end websites and graphics

that bigger companies can, and platforms like Instagram and Facebook make it easier for them to

expand their business and use it as a contact method for their customers. In fact, almost all

businesses are on social media now and if they are not, it makes many people feel as though they

are harder to contact:

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E.J. Westlake’s chapter titled “Friend Me If You Facebook: Generation Y and Performative

Surveillance” touches on how people today connect more through social media than they do face

to face. Westlake states:

“Because Facebook was founded as a way to enhance face-to-face contact on university

campuses, it has virtual and physical life unique on the internet. Contrary to prevailing

attitudes of Baby Boomers and Generation X-ers that Generation Y is somehow socially

and politically disengaged because of technology, the opposite is true...members of

Generation Y perform...on the web to build community and to communicate in ways that

will forever alter, for better or worse, the ways in which people relate in person.”

Although the negatives of social media are constantly discussed, the facts show the exact

opposite (McNeill). Through social media people are able to create a presence that allows them

to make more in-depth connections with other people. Even in the television shown ​How I Met

Your Mother​ an episode titled “History vs. Mystery” addresses what people can learn about each

other over social media and the connections they can make through common interests. In the

show, one of the protagonists Ted is able to judge whether or not he would like to date a certain

person whether or not their Facebook page reflects a personality that he is interested in. Social

media has created a space for people to connect more than they would have than if they met in

person or spent time together in person.

In today’s society, with all of the access to new technologies, people adapt to

representing themselves in the ways that they see fit. Social media allows for people to represent

themselves, or the people they would like to be without being excluded from the crowd. Anyone

is able to post a picture on instagram that could show themselves dressed up in their best outfits
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or their most ragged sweatpants and people will still like and comment on these photos. Instead

of having to maintain a consistent face to presence they are able to portray different aspects of

their personality and be accepted for their different sides (Shultze). Social media does not hinder

self-representation but instead helps it to flourish and allow users to feel comfortable with the

ways that they represent themselves online.

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Works Cited

McNeill, Laurie, and John David Zuern. “Online Lives 2.0: Introduction.” ​Biography​, vol. 38,

no. 2, 2015, pp. v-xlvi., www.jstor.org/stable/24570350.

“Mystery vs. History.” ​How I Met Your Mother: Season 7, Episode 6,​ written by Chuck Tatham,

directed by Pamela Fryman, 20th Century Fox Television, 2011.

“Oh, You Don't 'Do' Social Media for Business? Tell Me More about How You Plan to Stay

Relevant.” ​Quickmeme,​ www.quickmeme.com/meme/3oup1w.

“One Small Step.” ​Access to This Page Has Been Blocked,​

www.fiverr.com/vblaze17/create-100-social-media-post-images-quotes-and-memes.

Rettberg, Jill Walker. Seeing Ourselves Through Technology: How We Use Selfies, Blogs and

Wearable Devices to See and Shape Ourselves. Springer.

Talks, TEDx, and Ulrike Shultze. ​YouTube​, YouTube, 23 Apr. 2015,

www.youtube.com/watch?v=CSpyZor-Byk&frags=pl,wn.

Thumim, Nancy, and Thumim, Nancy. Self-Representation and Digital Culture. Palgrave

Macmillan UK.

Westlake, E. J. “Friend Me If You Facebook: Generation Y and Performative Surveillance.”

TDR

(1988-),​ vol. 52, no. 4, 2008, pp. 21–40. ​JSTOR​, www.jstor.org/stable/25145553.

“Instagram Help Center.” ​Privacy Policy | Instagram Help Center​,

help.instagram.com/477434105621119.

“Community Standards.” ​Facebook​,

www.facebook.com/communitystandards/adult_nudity_sexual_activity.