Tory MP Dr. Luke Evans has proposed a new law to include labels alerting users where social media pictures have been altered to give women big bums or skinny waists. He has said that doctored Instagram pictures of celebrities and other users are creating a warped view of beauty and it is fueling a mental health crisis. Dr. Luke has drawn up a Bill to force celebrities and marketers to label pictures that have been hugely altered.
Snapchat, worth an estimated $36 billion, is also considering to add a label to digitally-altered images of celebrities and other users to alert people that these pictures may not represent reality. The social media giant has said that Luke’s proposals to make it law have merits. The company has confirmed that it is planning to introduce something subtle to flag images. Dr. Evans applauded the company’s plans and told MailOnline that it was great to see Snapchat stepping up.
Dr. Evans’s Bill has been backed by a string of celebrities, charity organizations, as well as MPs. Snapchat’s head of public policy UK and the Nordics, Henry Turnball, revealed the company’s support for Dr. Evan’s campaign. He told the Parliament’s Women & Equalities Committee that he thinks that Luke’s bill is something that has some merit. He added that it should be ‘carefully thought through.’
Turnball said that the company already uses this kind of approach. Snapchat has a new feature that allows users to transform their heads into babyfaces. This feature comes with a little rattle logo that shows users that the image is fake. Dr. Evans told MailOnline that mental health can lead to eating disorders and steroid abuse. He said that trying to live up to impossible expectations of body picture is a challenge for numerous individuals in Britain. The warped view of beauty fuels the mental health crisis.
However, the UK Public Policy Manager of Facebook, Richard Earley, dismissed this Bill. Earley stated that the research he has seen suggests that it is not an effective way to address body image concerns. People have criticized various celebrities including Lauren Goodger for altering their body shape in social media images. According to critics, these touched-up photos fuel teenage insecurity. Although Dr. Evans is campaigning to get the Bill through Parliament, Government will have to back this movement to make it a law.
H/T: Unilad.
Read next: Snapchat Introduces New Multiplayer Snap Game Called Bitmoji Paint
Snapchat, worth an estimated $36 billion, is also considering to add a label to digitally-altered images of celebrities and other users to alert people that these pictures may not represent reality. The social media giant has said that Luke’s proposals to make it law have merits. The company has confirmed that it is planning to introduce something subtle to flag images. Dr. Evans applauded the company’s plans and told MailOnline that it was great to see Snapchat stepping up.
Dr. Evans’s Bill has been backed by a string of celebrities, charity organizations, as well as MPs. Snapchat’s head of public policy UK and the Nordics, Henry Turnball, revealed the company’s support for Dr. Evan’s campaign. He told the Parliament’s Women & Equalities Committee that he thinks that Luke’s bill is something that has some merit. He added that it should be ‘carefully thought through.’
Turnball said that the company already uses this kind of approach. Snapchat has a new feature that allows users to transform their heads into babyfaces. This feature comes with a little rattle logo that shows users that the image is fake. Dr. Evans told MailOnline that mental health can lead to eating disorders and steroid abuse. He said that trying to live up to impossible expectations of body picture is a challenge for numerous individuals in Britain. The warped view of beauty fuels the mental health crisis.
However, the UK Public Policy Manager of Facebook, Richard Earley, dismissed this Bill. Earley stated that the research he has seen suggests that it is not an effective way to address body image concerns. People have criticized various celebrities including Lauren Goodger for altering their body shape in social media images. According to critics, these touched-up photos fuel teenage insecurity. Although Dr. Evans is campaigning to get the Bill through Parliament, Government will have to back this movement to make it a law.
Read next: Snapchat Introduces New Multiplayer Snap Game Called Bitmoji Paint
