Sexy Selfie Nation

Standing Up for Yourself in Today's Toxic, Sexist Culture

Sexy Selfie Nation

Standing Up for Yourself in Today's Toxic, Sexist Culture

Leora Tanenbaum (Author)

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Description

Chances are that you are getting it all wrong.

In this eye-opening new work, slut-shaming expert Leora Tanenbaum explains that when we criticize young women for wearing body-revealing outfits and sharing sexy selfies, we are losing the plot.

The problem is not with the actions young women take but with the toxic, sexist conditions they are responding to.

Young people are sick of being held responsible for others' inability to keep their eyes off their bodies. They explain that most of the time, they aren't even trying to sexualize themselves-and, when they do, they are taking control over their bodily autonomy and standing up for themselves.

Tanenbaum demonstrates that “sexy” does not mean “inviting sex,” and that when young women and nonbinary people embrace a sexualized aesthetic or post sexy pictures, they do so on their own terms.

In choosing to wear body-revealing clothing and posting sexy selfies, young people are taking a stand for themselves and against three pillars of nonconsensual sexualization that shape their daily lives:
Gendered dress codes, which allow teachers and administrators to scrutinize and comment on girls' bodies; Nonconsensual sharing of intimate images (“revenge porn” and “deepfakes”), which portray girls and women as sexual objects deserving of public humiliation; The aftermath of sexual harassment and assault, when victims are told-still today, even after #MeToo-that they were “asking for it.”

There's nothing wrong with taking and sharing intimate pictures. There's nothing wrong with feeling good about one's body. Everyone should be able to stand up for themselves, experience a sense of bodily autonomy, and shape and share their image on their own terms.

If you like cultural criticism that supports women of all identities, then you'll love Sexy Selfie Nation.

Introduction
Part I. Too Sexy for Your Shirt: Cultural and Historical Context for the Environment Today
Chapter 1: The Paradox of the Subway Shirt
Chapter 2: Why We Wear Revealing Clothes
Chapter 3: You Should Have Seen the Flappers
Part II. Everyone's Eyes on Your Body: Three Toxic, Sexist Conditions Shaping Young People's Lives
Chapter 4: Growing Up with Gendered Dress Codes
Chapter 5: Growing Up with Image-Based Sexual Abuse (“Revenge Porn” and “Deepfakes”)
Chapter 6: Growing Up Blamed for Sexual Harassment and Assault
Part III. Girls and Women 14-21: Wresting Control: How Sharing Sexy Selfies Can Be Positive or Pernicious
Chapter 7: Sexy Selfies
Chapter 8: The Unsexy Side of Sexy Selfies
Chapter 9: The Cost of Being Instafamous
Part IV. Women 22-30: The OnlyFans Generation: Why Monetizing Sexy Selfies Is Rewarding for Some, Risky for All
Chapter 10: When Selling Your Sexy Selfies is Healing
Chapter 11: When Your Monetized Sexy Selfies Are Stolen
Conclusion
Appendix: Selected Resources
About the Author

Product details

Published	May 20 2025
Format	Hardback
Edition	1st
Extent	240
ISBN	9781538194003
Imprint	Rowman & Littlefield Publishers
Illustrations	9 textboxes
Dimensions	9 x 6 inches
Publisher	Bloomsbury Publishing

Author

Leora Tanenbaum

Leora Tanenbaum began researching and writing abou…

Tanenbaum brings depth and empathy to the conversation.

Peace, Love, and ....
Tanenbaum is a careful and thorough listener, committed to accurately rendering the voices of young women and non-binary folks when they talk to her about the intricacies of their lives, online and otherwise … The author has done us all a service, adding another must-read book for those who want to understand a new generation's anxieties around appearance and self-image.

Lilith Magazine
"In Sexy Selfie Nation, Leora Tanenbaum deftly wades into the objectification of young women's bodies on social media and the conditions that produce it. Spoiler alert: the problem is not young women posting selfies! People want easy answers, but Tanenbaum considers complex questions: Is the sexy selfie an act of empowerment? Is it a clap back? Is it an imperfect response to an imperfect system? This is a must-read for anyone figuring out how to understand this new moment and how to navigate it as a parent or a young person."

Samhita Mukhopadhyay, author of The Myth of Making It and former executive editor of Teen Vogue
Leora Tanenbaum's gift is speaking directly to young women without judgment or shame about the trickiest of topics-objectification, sexual agency, bodily autonomy--and what and where those lines might be. Sexy Selfie Nation is an indispensable guide to helping them define and make their choices in a culture that sexualizes them from childhood and then blames them when they fight back.

Peggy Orenstein, author of Girls & Sex
Finally, teen girls get the respect they deserve from someone who truly cares. In Sexy Selfie Nation, Leora Tanenbaum acts as a mediator between these girls and their disapproving adults, offering impressive empathy to both sides. This book is an essential account of what teens are thinking when they show off their bodies, and a reminder that a safer, shame-free world is possible.

Nona Willis Aronowitz, author of Bad Sex and former sex columnist for Teen Vogue
Tanenbaum tackles an immensely important subject with this enlightening, surprising, and thoroughly researched consideration of young women, clothing, and sexual objectification. In compelling chapters with first person interviews, references to academic studies and general media coverage, as well as the author's own astute observations, Tanenbaum considers the societal minefield girls and young women must navigate simply by getting dressed. In reviewing gendered school dress codes, which demoralize and intimidate, she notes the particular targeting of young women of color, and how teens have smartly tested that reality by shifting identical clothes from white to Black bodies and tracking the different response. From the prosaic (choosing to wear tank tops when it's hot) to the particular (selecting color and style for an emotional lift on difficult days), her subjects run up against disapproval from family, school officials, and strangers who feel qualified to comment, castigate, and judge their clothing choices. Citing court cases and real-life situations from middle school to the Olympics, plus the risks behind “sexy selfies” and the long term degradation wrought by image-based sexual abuse (chiefly “revenge porn”), Tanenbaum's work is great in scope but intimate in execution. Outstanding.

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