Agam Bansal is the lead author of a study that cataloged 259 deaths that occurred while taking selfies between 2011 to 2017. According to a report by the Washington Post care of the Manchester Union Leader,
“The selfie deaths have become a major public health problem,” Agam Bansal, the study’s lead author, told The Washington Post.
While all death is tragic, I’m not convinced this constitutes a global public health problem.
In the same time period, about 600 people died in Russia from falling icicles. Over 2700 people in the United States died falling out of bed. And 17,000 Africans were killed by Hippos.
“What worries me the most is that it is a preventable cause of death,” Bansal said. “Taking a toll on these many numbers just because you want a perfect selfie because you want a lot of likes, shares on Facebook, Twitter or other social media, I don’t think this is worth compromising a life for such a thing.”
Again, all death is tragic, and these shufflings off of the mortal coil are no less so, (and yes this is a cultural problem) but what exactly is the preventative measure? How do you impart upon the people of the world an obligation toward common sense when gripped by the urge to capture what was (in a previous generation) known as a “Kodak Moment?”
Common sense is not common so the only cure would be to ban cameras in mobile phones or the devices themselves.
You’ll need a few more deaths than 43 a year planet-wide to work up a frenzy to even talk about that idea. Then you’d need the sort of government willing and able to do that.
Those sorts of governments are a significantly greater threat “to public health” than selfies or hippos.
