Sixth International Conference on Communication & Media Studies

Abstract

Research in psychology suggests that the use of social media, particularly the curation and performance of identity through “selfies”, correlates with an increase in trait narcissism. Meanwhile the “24 hour news” cycle of social media binds us increasingly to our screens as we seek more information and more understanding about who we are in relation to the ever-morphing social media environment. We have also been able to witness recently the stunning rise of politicians who fit the profile of pathological narcissism - dealing in political stunts and “fake news” - yet who have amassed enormous followings using social media. McLuhan had a concept of narcissism as a “Narcissus-narcosis” - a “numbing” of the senses in response to “technological trauma”, which we can liken to Freud’s concept of narcissism as the conservation of energy through the looping of the drive back towards the self. Revisiting McLuhan’s ideas in relation to theories of “technology love”, “post-truth” politics, and “surveillance capitalism”, I bring to light some of the effects of our social media “narcosis”.