The Social Dilemma

I'm doing these blog posts by series because it's easier for me to follow schedule, and because I feel it works best with what I want to achieve with my writing. This new series is all about the internet, and my relationship with it and its creations. Every outfit is inspired by a person I follow on social media, and every post will be written about a certain topic related to problems, and/or benefits of being online.

I'm going to start this off with the person I've followed the longest on social media, Jessica Clements. I've followed Jess, an NYC model, on Instagram and YouTube for about 6 years; since 2014. She's one of my favorites because - apart from her beautiful style and grace - I relate to her mental health journey. Which is very closely related to the subject I'm going to attempt to discuss in these short lines.

I guess this all starts with Netflix's The Social Dilemma, which left me heavily pondering on my own relationship with social media; and I make emphasis on the word relationship because yes, in effect, it's a relationship. In this very chilling documentary, the difference between a tool and an active interaction is explained. A tool is a "device or implement used to carry out a particular function" while an active interaction is a "reciprocal action or influence." We tend to think of the World Wide Web - and all its creations (social media) - as a tool, when in fact it's an active interaction because it demands things from us; making it a reciprocal action.

We're manipulated into using these social media "tools" because what these things sell are users... us... "the gradual, slight, imperceptible change in our own behavior and perception." (Jaron Lanier, 19) Every single one of these platforms are fighting for our attention in order to keep people on screen, and change what we do, who we are, and what we buy. This alone is crazy to me, this profound sense of capitalism in our lives, but it's not what I want to focus on today. I'm going to focus on the idea that we have a social media addiction.

Are you conscious of your usage? Because I wasn't, and I considered myself someone with a very low usage time. In order to be conscious, you have to realize every single time you go to reach for your phone, and most importantly the reason why you're reaching for it. You're supposed to reach for your phone for a specific reason; to use it as a tool. You're not supposed to reach for it because you feel like you need to, to fill up your time, to check how many likes you have or if someone has tagged you in something. This could be considered an addiction: "a physical and mental dependency on a particular substance or activity, which unables you to stop taking it or doing it without incurring adverse effects."

In concrete words, social media is hacking our psychology and exploiting our human vulnerability by "giving" us something we all desire: human interaction. The problem is that it's not. It's a heart-shaped dopamine drug disguised as affection. And it's our duty to realize that these cold and mechanical clicks mean nothing but boredom. Go back to treating your phone as a tool, and stop having a toxic relationship with it in which you are nothing but a product.

Look Diary

1) SILK SCARF - Banana Republic Large Floral Square Scarf

2) WHITE, BELL-BUTTOM, HIGH WAISTED TROUSERS - Zara Textured Wide Leg Pants

3) ANKLE BOOTS - Zara Minimalist Heeled Leather Ankle Boots

4) DENIM BUTTON-DOWN - Madewell Denim Oversized Ex-B