Post #4: Essena O’Neill- Lauren Eldridge

Jose Van Dijck’s argues that the culture of connectivity arises through the process of continuous pressure “both from peers and technologies – to expand through competition and gain power through strategic alliances” highlights the issues surrounding constant social media usage (21). This is seen through Essena O’Neill’s public debate with the way she was obsessed with likes and followers.  She wanted to obtain a “virtual hierarchy’ without even realizing the consequences. Dijcks framework on neoliberal economic principles supports these issues of O’Neill. Her online presences in which she abruptly left due to the stresses of trying to have the “perfect” life, came from her constant social media usage. She wanted people to think she was perfect and thin. By doing this, she would starve herself and take  hundreds of photos just to find the perfect one.  In addition, the neoliberal economic principles demonstrate how the online world is in fact a fabrication and a form of competition between other “online celebrities”. Many have been conditioned to think that the amount of followers and likes they get on a video or photo define who they are.