“This is not pro-ana”: Denial and disguise in pro-anorexia online spaces

ABSTRACT

As a result of censorship by internet moderators and vilification by the mainstream media, users of “pro-ana” online spaces deploy creative devices in order to remain online. These range from coining obscure hashtags, such as “#thynspo,” to displaying disclaimers to deny that the space is pro-ana. In this article, I draw on empirical research collected across websites and social media to argue that through denial and disguise of pro-ana, the phenomenon is being normalized. Using theories of postfeminism and neoliberalism, I suggest that the boundaries between pro-ana and the everyday espousal of thinness are more blurred than ever.

KEYWORDS:

• Censorship
• neoliberalism
• normalization
• postfeminism
• pro-ana
• thinspo

Notes

¹ “Thinspiration,” often truncated to “thinspo,” is a portmanteau of “thin” and “inspiration.” It constitutes images of thin, predominantly female bodies that operate as motivation for weight loss. Thinspiration originates from pro-anorexia online spaces where individuals post such images in order to support them in the maintenance of a low body weight.

² This article forms part of a wider research project which interrogates the negotiation of the thin ideal in pro-ana online spaces.

³ For a fuller discussion on intersectionality in pro-ana online spaces, see Cobb (in press).

⁴ NSFW is the acronym for “not safe for work,” a tag which usually connotes nudity or violence.

⁵ Acronyms such as UGW (ultimate goal weight), GW (goal weight- often listed as GW1, GW2, as the user tracks their falling weight), SW (starting weight), CW (current weight), and LW (lowest weight), appear throughout pro-ana online spaces. Users insert these various weights on their signatures in forum or social media posts, or as a tagline in a blog for example.

Additional information

Notes on contributors

Gemma Cobb

Gemma Cobb is a PhD candidate in Gender Studies (Humanities) at the University of Sussex. She holds a Master’s in Shakespeare and English Literature from the University of Bristol.