Essena O’Neill, the 19-year-old Australian Instagram model, has quit social media – because she’s tired of being fake – after editing the captions on her “perfect photos” to tell the truth behind the pictures. She first changed her Instagram name to “Social Media Is Not Real Life” to denounce the artificiality of social media. Thereafter she re-captioned many of her old pictures on Instagram to reveal the painstaking work that went into creating what seemed to be spontaneous moments in a way debunking the myth that many of her photos were “real”. The Instagram star then deleted her account and created the website Let’s Be Game Changers to explain her decision and to shed light on the fantasy world of social media.
“When I was 18, I had 500,000+ followers on Instagram, 275,000+ on Youtube, 200,000+ Tumblr and 60,000 daily views on Snapchat. Deals proposed were on average $800 an Instagram photo, $3000 full featured YouTube Video, $500 Snapchat mention. And I was earning Adsense from monetising my YouTube videos – with two videos a week I was making around $3000 a month off these advertisements alone.
I’m over this mainstream world and the mainstream way we use the internet. I’m over celebrity culture, hot gossip and endless advertisements. I used to live in this world, which ironically I’m told is the ‘real world’ – a world dictated by screens, numbers, money and superficial ideas of happiness. I’m over people and companies that just want to sell, not create out of passion and purpose.
I found social media (the current system) to be just contrived mages and edited clips ranked against each other. It’s a system based on social approval, likes and dislikes, validation in views, success in followers… it’s perfectly orchestrated judgement. And it consumed me. So I removed myself from it to focus purely on stuff that matters to my soul.” she wrote on her website.
Before logging off entirely, she said she realized she wasn’t living an authentic life. “I was addicted to what others thought of me, simply because it was so readily available. I was severely addicted. I believed how many likes and followers I had correlated to how many people liked me. I didn’t even see it happening, but social media had become my sole identity. I didn’t even know what I was without it.”
O’Neill wrote that she was engaging in unhealthy habits just to get the perfect “hot body” shot. Her “candid” bikini shots were totally staged. She would spend hours trying to get the “perfect” selfie, and then would edit it using several different apps. She also revealed that she made money off photos on the regular photos, even though they looked completely candid.
In the below video, she talks about why she has learned social media “sucks”.
However, her ”brave” and ”honest” act has received a mixed response on Twitter:
I never paid attention to Essena O’Neill but I really admire her bravery and honesty now
— cara (@caranvr) October 31, 2015
My thoughts on Essena O’Neill’s new video. pic.twitter.com/3ltEseFWgY — Sammy Paul (@ICOEPR) November 3, 2015
Social media is what you make of it. Post what you want and enjoy what you do. Don’t blame social media for you being fake RE Essena O’Neill
— Evan Edinger (@EvanEdinger) November 3, 2015
Is it supposed to be ironic that what Essena O’Neill is doing is making her more popular on social media? — Tana Montana (@Tanamontana100) November 3, 2015
This Article (Teen Instagram Star Quits Social Media, Reveals Her Perfect Life Was A Lie) is free and open source. You have permission to republish this article under a Creative Commons license with attribution to the author and AnonHQ.com.
What a shitload of fuck. Acting like her life is tough and so hard? I’d like to go with her entire family to Syria in the war area’s where ISIS are raping people their parents en slaughtering childeren en bombs are flying everywhere around your face.
So please STFU and Anonymous, stop posting shit like this. It’s anoying and nothing relative to someone having a “hard” live. I’m not complaining about having a hard life and trust me… my life has been a billion times tougher then the pussy shit she had to go through. So just fuck off with this Anon and go do something about real stuff in the world.
not sure that she says her life is hard? I think she just says that its superficial. Self efficacy is a noble trait. Granted, what she writes is inherently hypocritical but it is refreshing to read. A little depth has emerged from an otherwise superficial landscape.
No offence mate and I do understand where you’re coming from, but there are thousands of young girls and women out there that are fighting a losing battle trying to live up to marketings superficial ideals of what we’re supposed to look like. For a young woman of this age to be able to see through the bullshit and hopefully spread the message of being happy in yourself then I can only applaud her efforts.
Maybe you should spend a little time checking out the marketing that is being employed where ISIS are concerned and realise that it is western culture and politics that have brought them about. Unfortunately for the people of Syria it’s not just a matter of turning their backs on the attrocities that are surrounding them on a daily basis. It is our job to change this.
OMG!!!!! Finally, the truth from someone that isn’t older than 40. This is fantastic news because this means finally the youth see’s the truth for what it really is and that means there is real hope for the future of mankind. I only wish Essena was in my life, I would definitely ask her to marry me and not because she’s beautiful, but because she is the smartest young woman I have ever come across in so many years. I only hope and wish the rest of the youth grows up seeing theses truths for themselves. I give you my utmost respect and love Essena.
From someone that isn’t older than 40? How does age change TRUTH in any way?
Truth never changes, it is absolute. One’s perception of what truth is changes with age & experience.
a tad bit similiar to the “kaitlyn jenner” effect
on how she has more followers now
You forgot to mention she was asking for people to donate to her to help her pay rent 1 week after she was on television and paid a large sum of money.
She blew thousands of dollars and lives a life that none of you people know. You all sit back and argue over some crazy chicks scam and not looking at the reality of it all.
She is 19 and gets paid to take selfies. Why can she not get a job like the rest of us. Since when did your iPhone’s camera become a socially acceptable career option?
How many girls with fake lips/boobs/eyebrows sit there and complain about “being fake”. Yeah society is fucked when it comes to social media and youth being brainwashed by social image standards. No one is to blame but ourselves and parents for not realising that from the beginning. People are so busy buying jeeps and wearing leggings that they forget about what the real problems are. She is a stuck up attention seeker and always has been, directly sourced from her school mates…