Selfie Regret: It's a Thing
Posting a hot selfie can be thrilling — until you wish you hadn't done it in the first place. That’s what happened to model Ireland Baldwin on Tuesday when she tweeted, “I’m never taking another selfie again.” The 18-year-old didn’t specify which photo she was referencing, but it could have been a cheeky shot she had posted earlier that day, revealing her bikini-clad butt.
It’s called "selfie regret" and Baldwin is just the latest celeb to experience remorse for sharing unflattering, embarrassing, or controversial photos. On Sunday, Canadian Olympic speed skater Brittany Schussler tweeted a photo of herself and Russian President Vladimir Putin with the caption, “I should've asked him to be my Valentine!" The image generated angry comments due to Putin’s discriminatory laws against gay Russians, prompting Schussler to remove the picture. In July, during a self-described tequila haze, television host Geraldo Rivera tweeted a nearly nude portrait with the caption, “70 is the new 50.” His daughter chastised him, and Rivera deleted the tweet the next morning, telling a New York radio station, "Note to self: no tweeting after 1 a.m.” And in August, Justin Bieber posted a shirtless shot that showed off many of his tattoos, only to swiftly replace it with an inexplicably similar version. Others, like Emma Stone, are accidental victims of selfie regret. On Wednesday, a nude selfie (allegedly) of the “Easy A” actress hit the Web, though the 25-year-old claims that it's a lookalike.
“Selfie,” dubbed 2013's word of the year by The Oxford English Dictionary, remains a robust trend, but behind the duck-lipped/cat-bearded/smizing/tongue-wagging narcissism lies angsty self-doubt. The average selfie taker can easily snap a dozen photos before the perfect image is captured and filtered, so it's understandable that they'd apply an equal amount of scrutiny to the final product. Plus, exposure to a sea of commenters weighing in on everything from the subject's looks to the background scenery is nerve-wracking, and if the photo doesn’t generate a satisfying amount of “likes,” it’s easy to second guess the decision to post. It’s no surprise that more than a quarter of adults who have shared a selfie later regretted their decision, according to a recent Harris poll.
There are also those who may experience selfie regret in private. Take President Obama, for example, who posed for a three-way shot with Denmark's prime minister Helle Thorning-Schmidt and Britain's prime minister David Cameron at a December memorial service honoring Nelson Mandela. And there many others who probably should feel regretful, even if they aren't, i.e., everyone on the blog “Selfies With Homeless People.”
Sure, when you’re lying around at home or bored, it can seem tempting and harmless to overshare (everyone does it). But upload too hastily and you'll find yourself on the receiving end of judgment, even from yourself. Taking it down can make matters worse – a virtual public acknowledgment of your mistake – while leaving it up leads to further embarrassment. The lesson: Think before you post.
