Instagram influencers are the easiest sub-set of “celebrities” to sh-t on because no one will ever stick up for an influencer. They are universally ridiculed and dismissed. So what am I doing here?
Amanda Seyfried posted two things about an influencer (who I’ll get to in a second). The first is a screenshot of a comment Amanda’s friend (unidentified) left on the influencer’s bikini selfie, and the second is a selfie Amanda took. Please read both captions.
最初的评论从阿曼达的朋友很漂亮condescending and body shaming, (“Honeychild, you are glorifying an unhealthy body image” and “young girls don’t need any more images of emaciated women”). It also does that thing where people tell other people to worry about “real things,” like kids in cages. I don’t follow this influencer, don’t know her politics, I have no idea what keeps her up at night. I’m fairly certain she does not have the power to change federal amnesty policies in detention centers.
(I’m choosing not to identify the influencer because she hasn’t posted about it and seemingly wants to be left out of the conversation – lots of commenters on Amanda’s post are revealing who it is, and a few have called out Amanda for putting this woman on blast. Amanda’s defence is that she didn’t reveal her name so it’s not her fault this woman was identified.)
Amanda taking the time to repost this comment while celebrating her own attempt to “open up the discussion” after this woman blocked her (and her friend) is disingenuous. You cannot open up the conversation with someone who has blocked you – they blocked you because they don’t want to talk to you!
Amanda and her friend are projecting some serious sh-t onto this person, about body image and what is expected of women in the public eye (“If we’re ready to get paid for flaunting our lifestyle (and inspiring some in the meantime) we have to be open to the discussions surrounding what we’re promoting.”) By trying to force this conversation, Amanda is imposing her views/morals/beliefs onto someone who does not want to engage with her.
阿曼达（Amanda）可能没有意识到这一点，因为她很长时间以来一直是名人，但她没有与这个人的对话或解释。而且，如果我们要谈论身体形象和影响力，那么让我们谈谈女演员。阿曼达（Amanda）涵盖了杂志，她走了红地毯。如果我们谈论责任，阿曼达是否有责任告诉我们她在红地毯上使用了多少头发，或者她在颁奖典礼前获得了哪种面部护理，或者她与培训师一起工作的频率以使她在高级礼服上看起来她最好的版本？谁能决定什么值得呼叫，不应该谈论什么？
Actresses like Amanda are far more influential than any influencer; of course there is the argument they too are forced to maintain a beauty standard they didn’t create – a fair point. But would Amanda use an InStyle cover with a famous actress (like Emma Stone or Blake Lively) in this way? Doubtful. This influencer will never be a threat to Amanda’s status; she will never run into her at the Golden Globes or go up against her for a role. It’s easy for Amanda to target her with the guise of “starting conversations” and “I think you’re so much better than this” while also telling her she glorifies “adolescent female form.” Why would anyone be open to a comment that is clearly meant to malign them right from the start?
The way bodies are talked about on public platforms has changed drastically in the last 10 years or so - when I first started writing as a job, “body shaming” was not a thing. Amanda Seyfried came up at a time before we collectively acknowledged how harmful it was to write that an actress should “eat a sandwich” or dissect a postpartum body. We are still talking about women’s bodies, constantly. Outlets are still writing headlines about how Adele looks “different” after her divorce or proclaiming someone to be “goals” for belfie (that’s a butt selfie). The language has evolved (partly because of the wellness industrial complex) so that these conversations may seem more healthy on the surface, but we all, on some level, need to continue to recalibrate and relearn what a “good body” means. So how is Amanda, who herself is part of an industry that has been so physical-focused recalibrating and relearning herself to be a part of forwarding the conversation in a meaningful way?
