Given the premium placed on appearances, this is a welcome move, even if its effectiveness is reliant on people being truthful about their age on social-media platforms.
Nov 28, 2024 06:35 IST First published on: Nov 28, 2024 at 05:55 IST
The grim subtext of German fairy tales had it right: When you ask the mirror on the wall to judge the fairest of them all, the answer can open up the darkness within — dipping self-esteem, crippling anxiety or envy. And unlike fairytales, there may not be happily-ever-afters at the end of the ordeal, especially if the mirror happens to be social-media platforms where the metric of beauty is set by algorithms primed to fuel insecurities. Earlier this year, parents in the US had launched a petition against TikTok and YouTube for promoting body dysmorphia among children through the use of AI-generated beauty and wellness influencers. Now, TikTok has announced restrictions on the use of beauty filters by users below the age of 18.
Given the premium placed on appearances, this is a welcome move, even if its effectiveness is reliant on people being truthful about their age on social-media platforms. The toll of dissemblance — hiding one’s appearance with filters to look a certain way — and the consequences of harassment or cyberbullying are immense. Study after study has established correlations between social-media usage and mental-health afflictions.
The restriction also reignites the conversation around the ageist, sexist approach to beauty reinforced by airbrushed perfection. And yet, beauty can be a fluid curve that embraces ageing bodies, arthritic limbs, puffy eyes and sagging skin. Maggie Smith became the face of fashion brand Loewe at the age of 88. Zeenat Aman remains sassy at 73, pushing back at the beauty stereotype. For the message to percolate down to youngsters on social media, however, it needs to be a combination of legislature, better role models and parental guidance that helps them negotiate the minefields of online platforms better.
