IndexAbstractSocial media and unrealistic beauty standardsThe influence of social media on self-esteem and body imageThe "fitspiration" phenomenon on social mediaBody image issues in men and women womenConclusionReferencesAbstractThroughout the essay, I have tried to analyze and present how influencers develop and use their content to interact with wider masses on Instagram and thus attract sponsors to endorse and review products. I explained how these influencers create self-esteem issues and self-deception among their followers by creating unrealistic beauty standards on social media. The essay will also focus on how these beauty standards perpetuate a negative body image among the masses. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on "Why Violent Video Games Shouldn't Be Banned"? Get an Original Essay Social Media and Unrealistic Beauty Standards Since its inception in 2010, Instagram, a social media platform, has attracted a total number of 1 billion monthly active users, and half of that user base is made up of millennials ages 18-29 who use the power of social media 3 more than any other demographic and who have shared a total of 50 billion photos to date (Omnicore, 2019). Just like other social networks, Instagram allows an individual to interact with other users by following them, being followed by them, commenting, liking, tagging, and sending private messages. In terms of practice and use of images, Instagram differs from similar platforms such as Facebook and Twitter, for example. While on Facebook users upload images to tell their stories and thus create unique portraits, and on Twitter users signal their identity through shared links, Instagram, on the other hand, is the place where users communicate through images to show themselves in the way they they desire to be seen by others (Lampe, Ellison, and Steinfield 2007; Silfverberg, Liikkanen, and Lampinen 2011). The popularity of Instagram has often been linked to the phenomenon of the selfie, a self-portrait that the user takes with them with their camera (Bennett, 2014; Wagner et al., 2016). Unlike traditional media that primarily feature images of models or celebrities, social media platforms, such as Instagram, often contain images of a variety of different comparison targets that vary in relational closeness to the user (e.g. friends, family , acquaintances, strangers, celebrities, or even yourself). Thanks to this feature that allows anyone to share their life regardless of their identity, many users take advantage of the opportunity by posting content that could engage other users and thus gain likes and followers. In an article, The New York Times published an investigation into the prevalence of social media bots, particularly those purchased by aspiring influencers and celebrities who want to increase their prominence online. Over the years, a company called Devumi “has sold approximately 200 million Twitter followers to at least 39,000 customers,” including famous athletes, chefs, and reality TV stars (Schaefer, 2019). With larger numbers of followers and more engaging content created by traveling to places and purchasing expensive products, these users are known as "Instagram influencers" where they use their blog to influence other users through their content. Due to their popularity, many brands approach these influencers and pay them to endorse or review their products. Influencers don't need millions of followers to get the attention of brand sponsors. The average number of followers of an influencer is almost 63,000 people,with nearly 60% of influencers on Instagram being women who often post lifestyle and fitness related content. Lifestyle accounts that can include content ranging from travel to food, beauty to fashion, allow influencers to offer both branded products and unique content to keep their posts fresh and engaging (Ryan, 2017). Since an influencer's main goal on Instagram is to get more engagement on their posts through comments, likes, shares, and active followers, they tend to make an extra effort to create content that interests their audience. In doing so, Influencers often tend to share the collection of their best and brightest moments, photos of themselves traveling to exquisite places, photos of their visits to trendy restaurants and the expensive meals they order, photos of a healthy life and photo of yourself. look good, especially for the purpose of convincing more and more brands to approach them, which in turn helps them earn more. The Influence of Social Media on Self-Esteem and Body Image While there are various ways that influencers use their accounts to influence their followers and the general public, one of the main ways is through self-portraits. Just as most people use social media to promote themselves, so many celebrities, influencers, models and brands also use it to sell themselves by creating an image of perfection. On Instagram there is a multitude of perfectly toned beauties, flat stomachs, plump breasts, incredibly long legs and firm, perfectly rounded buttocks. Thousands of Instagram accounts promoting images of perfectly sculpted men and women lead to low self-esteem and negative self-perception as users begin to measure themselves, their appearance, and their bodies by the standards created by perfectly formed bodies on Instagram. According to global research conducted by Dove, only 4% of women consider themselves beautiful, only 11% of girls globally feel comfortable describing themselves as "beautiful", 72% of girls feel enormous pressure to be beautiful, 80% of women agree that every A woman has something beautiful in her, but doesn't see her own beauty, while more than half of women globally (54%) agree that when it's about your appearance, they are the worst beauty critics (Dove). A systematic review of 20 articles published in 2016 found that photo-based activities, such as scrolling through Instagram or posting photos of oneself, were a particular problem when it came to negative thoughts about one's body (Oakes, 2019). Posting portraits that are mostly edited, faceted and filtered, posting them under hashtags like #clearskin, #naturalbeauty, #iwokeuplikethis, #perfect etc. and by promoting various products that are said to give clearer skin or hide blemishes, influencers often tend to create unrealistic beauty standards by which followers adapt to these standards. People compare their appearance to people in Instagram images, or whatever platform they're on, and often judge themselves to be worse off, says Jasmine Fardouly, a postdoctoral researcher at Macquarie University in Sydney, Australia ( Oakes, 2019). As a result of this comparison, users and followers are forced to purchase the products reviewed or approved by the influencers, thus ending up spending their fortunes doing so. The beauty industry, a persuasive and pervasive money-making machine, convinces the masses who use these influencers say we need to improve our appearance. As a result, this industry is growingquickly and skin care alone is worth 24 billion dollars a year, makeup 18 billion and hair care 38 billion. A report by the British Youth Council, A Body Confident Future, highlighted the “enormous” role such industries play in creating idealized images of beauty. This comes at a cost: a third of young people say media influence has made them feel the need to change their skincare routine or buy expensive makeup products to enhance their features or hide their imperfections. “Fitspiration” Phenomenon on Social Media Another unique feature of Instagram is the prominence of “fitspiration” images (the term fitspiration is a portmanteau of the words fitness and inspiration), which are images designed to motivate people to exercise and eat healthy. Young women are the largest consumers of inspirational images (Carrotte et al., 2015), and while these images can motivate people towards a healthier lifestyle (Tiggemann and Zaccardo, 2015), they are also largely focused on 'appearance and contain mainly women with thinness. and toned bodies. The hashtag “body goal” or “thinspo”, which is supposed to serve as inspiration to acquire a slim body, often ends up negatively influencing users as they tend to harm themselves. Studies show that browsing #fitspo posts on Instagram, for just 30 minutes, increases self-objectification. Additionally, another study found that women who shared their “Fitspo” photographs scored higher on charts tracking drives for thinness and compulsive exercise. 18% of the same group were at risk of developing an eating disorder (Ricky, 2018). In a world where we measure ourselves by how many likes we receive, it's no surprise that so many young men and women suffer from eating disorders or disordered thoughts about food in general. According to the National Eating Disorder Association, "40 to 60 percent of elementary school girls (ages 6 to 12) are concerned about their weight or becoming too fat." Body image issues in men and women It is essential to note that body image issues are not unique to women. Men were conditioned to nonchalance, a splash of Old Spice and a hasty wash at the sink. But there has also been a shift in male stereotypes as male influencers share content on Instagram which has seen the male population become more concerned with how their bodies look. In one study, 45% of men said they had experienced a period of “bigorexia,” an obsession with building muscle. While gender biases related to body image may make it harder for men to talk openly about their insecurities, the insecurities are certainly present. “Pressure for body perfection is increasing for men of all ages, which is a risk factor for developing an eating disorder,” Dr William Rhys Jones, of the Eating Disorders Faculty at the Royal College of Psychiatrists. “Images of unhealthy male body ideals in the media place unnecessary pressure on vulnerable people who struggle to be accepted through their appearance.'' Remember: this is just one example. Get a custom paper from our expert writers now. Customize EssayConclusionWhile various research has shown how Instagram creates unrealistic beauty standards and therefore creates self-esteem problems among its users, numerous influencers such as Jenny Gaither, Jessamyn Stanley, Zach Miko and Alicia Keys (just to name a few) are trying to combat the problem of beauty standards/