The social media world nearly exploded this week when singer Meghan Trainor pulled her long-anticipated music video for her single "Me Too" off the internet. The decision came after Trainor, who is known for being an outspoken activist on body image for millennials, discovered that her video editors left more than a few dance scenes on the cutting room floor; they Photoshopped several inches off of her waist. An unedited version of the video was released in its place.
Sadly, this story is far from unusual in media today. In our copy-and-paste, let's-add-this-filter-to-make-me-look-tanner world, essentially every photo we come across on our devices is retouched in some capacity. Never before in history has there been such accessible and effective ways to alter photographs. This practice has become all too common in industries such as music, magazines, and many more. Suddenly, having talent is not sufficient enough for society. You have to have the waistline to match.
Photoshop has become the easiest way to achieve a slim, beautiful appearance. Not only does this create a false sense of reality to every young boy or girl who picks up a the latest copy of their favorite magazine, but it gives these young minds the impression that they, too, must make their bodies look this way. However, this is impossible, as they are expected to make physical changes to themselves that only the eraser tool on a computer screen can accomplish.
With Photoshop, celebrities that we read about every day are warped into gods and goddesses, complete with clear skin, chiseled bodies, and enviable curves. However, these gorgeous photographs seem ridiculous in comparison to the actual, untouched photos that they derive from. By editing and retouching what the world sees, the media holds all of the control in the societal idea of beauty. With Photoshop, they have repeatedly abused that privilege, focusing only on the body types that they prefer. The simple reality is that people come in all shapes and sizes, and the media should celebrate that rather than suppress it.
So, let's all take a page from Ms. Trainor's book. Instead of idolizing these computer-generated physiques, let us look beyond the paint and pixels to find the true meaning of beauty: diversity. As a society, we should throw away the learned ideas of what is "beautiful" and what is "better" and embrace the differences among us, both physical and biological. We are a world of variety and that alone makes us beautiful. Now is the time to take a stand against the picture-perfect media and embrace real, natural beauty. No filter needed.
