Fabricated fantasies

A recent revelation by the Wall Street Journal laid bare the negative impacts of Instagram on teenagers. The report by the journal is based on certain leaked internal documents of the company, and hence, represents just the tip of the iceberg. More is expected to come in the coming weeks. Negative impact of social media platforms is something that is felt by its users on a daily basis; WSJ revelation has only further validated this. Instagram is one of the most popular social media platforms today, surpassing all others with a significant margin. One of the factors behind this soaring popularity is the virtual and customized world it creates for its users. The content on the platform can be distinguished from that on the others. Filter and photo editing features of Instagram are excessively used by the users, which sets into motion a cycle of comparison, self-contempt, disappointment and even distress. The leaked documents reveal how Instagram makes "body image issues worse for one in three teen girls". More disturbingly, the report also cited that teenagers have attributed their Instagram addiction to suicidal thoughts. Comparing oneself constantly with unrealistic expectations could prove to be very toxic indeed. The human tendency to compare among themselves is a perpetual process — and this tendency is more visible among teenagers. This keeps them hooked to the platform for almost the entire day and very likely leaves them wondering about their own looks and body image vis-à-vis peers and celebrities. Further, addiction to social media platforms is something that is fret upon by many teenagers but they couldn't help. It is not in all cases that over-investment of time on the social media platform is done inadvertently. In fact, in most cases, the teenagers are aware that they are sinking deep down the trap but they can't help themselves. The extra time invested on social media platforms comes at the cost of their curtailed exposure to the real-life physical world, apart from affecting their studies. Can it be said that it is just an extension of the features of user-generated content on the platform and the parent company has the least control over these issues? Certainly not. Social media companies have a wide range of data of their users and their functioning is driven by well-controlled algorithms. The 'out of control' argument doesn't simply hold water in this case. The business being the game of profit is not a negative thing in itself, but allowing the deterioration of societies the world over is very toxic. More than the question of capability, it is the question of accountability and responsibility, which the parent company has ignored until now. The fact that the leaked documents are almost a year old, reflects the laxity in the approach adopted by the social media company. In the intervening period till the WSJ revelation, Facebook has committed several times to bring in reforms in its architectural and functional setups. It appears that despite having the full knowledge of the inconsistencies, there has been no significant visible attempt in this direction to date. This callousness could potentially prove to be dangerous. As part of the solution, countries around the world should start building pressure on social media companies to bring in much-needed reforms. But this strategic move will take a long time as the aspects of finance and brand image are related to the issue. Social media companies have a wide-ranging influence over the world we live in. Sovereign governments control the territorial space and populations living therein but the social media companies have now come to govern the mental space of their users globally. If transparency in the functioning of sovereign nations is considered essential then transparency in operations of social media companies should also be seen as an imperative. Meanwhile, the companies mend their ways of functioning, people can't leave their children to suffer from the negative aspects of certain social media companies. Here comes the role of parents and teachers. Parents need to talk freely to their teenage children about issues like body image, perceptions of adventure and unrealistic expectations. Behind the regular nudging by parents against overusing smartphones lies acceptance of the same — which is not a bad thing completely. The point to be made here is that parents need to be objectively aware of the shortcomings of social media companies and hold open talks with their children over critical aspects rather than simply nudging them. There are many positive facets of social media; only a better understanding of the platform will help children avail those.