'Cop selfies' blog ignites digital narcissism debate

[View the story "'Cop selfies' blog raises questions about digital narcissism" on Storify]

Storified by CBC News Community· Tue, Jul 30 2013 14:58:43

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Single-serving tumblrs are like fortune cookies; sometimes they're silly, sometimes they'restrange and sometimes they make no sense at all. More often than not, they'regood for little more than a quick chuckle, but every once in a while, a Tumblogpops up that prompts us to ask some questions.

'Cop Selfies' is one of those blogs.

copselfies"Let us be plain: Cops are comic objects. And not just in film, not just in comedies. They are comic objects, period." - Evan Calder Will...

Like many a viral sensation before it, the blog's URL is being shared among friends like wildfire this week. Many are unsure as to why. but it's clear that self-taken photos of police officers in uniform (the more duckface the better) are captivating the web.

Cop Selfies is easily my favorite blog at the moment. Do yourself a favor. #whyisthissofunny #copselfieschelsea michael

so I followed a tumblr of cop selfies yesterday & I decided I am pleased with this decision pic.twitter.com/01YwrTTsScem twerk

You're totally looking at the Cop Selfies tumblr too...right? copselfies.tumblr.comAmericanShortFiction

Copselfies.tumblr.com is exactly what it sounds like -- an aggregation of self-portraits posted online by police officers, usually in uniform and on the job.

The style of self-portrature falls squarely into the realm of the "selfie," which is a newer term used to describe quick cell-phone snaps taken of one's self either in a mirror...

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Cop selfies... pic.twitter.com/S7rNn8qznWEmily

... or with one of the now-ubiquitous front-facing cameras found on most smartphones.

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The notion of the selfie (also known as GPOY -- gratuitous picture of yourself) has been a topic of much discussion and debate in recent years as smartphones have become more accessible and the act of stopping to create a self-portrait loses some of the taboo it once held.

And yet, selfies are still seen by many as narcissistic and vain -- a sign of our culture's obsession with technology, celebrities, and the self.

Selfies: Narcissistic, Empowering, or Just Fun?Rembrandt painted dozens of self-portraits over a lifetime, but a kid with a smartphone can match that output in an afternoon. And it's n...

Writer Brian Droitcour is one of many who have refuted the notion that selfies convey arrogance, writing that "narcissism is a pathological obsession with the self that inhibits the recognition of others... The real narcissists are the ones who never take selfies. They imagine their self as autonomous, hermetic--too precious to be shared."

Selfies and Selfiehood | on WordPress.comI love the word "selfie"! People used to call pictures of themselves GPOY-Gratuitous Pictures Of Yourself. But that tag has disappeared f...

Grace Gordon agrees, writing for Medium.com that the vocal outcry against selfies is disproportionate to the massive increase in the amount of selfies we're witnessed recently.

Mars Curiosity snaps a selfie for Twitter followers, NASA ... - CBCMars Curiosity snaps a selfie for Twitter followers, NASA. by Lauren O'Neil Posted: September 10, 2012 3:30 PM Last Updated: Septem...

#SELFIE (Instagram Music Video)sylviemanaigre01

Sisters live-tweet arrest after baseball field dashView the story "Sisters live-tweet arrest after baseball field dash" on Storify] Storified by CBC News Community · Tue, Jul 02 2013 14:59...

"Possibly spurred on by any number of technical or cultural developments (documented in greater detail here by Kate Losse) - wider adoption of Instagram, an upgrade on the iPhone 5 front-facing camera - these self-portraits, love it or leave it, are becoming more and more frequent," wrote Gordon last month.

"Unfortunately, the disdain for this form of self-expression seems similarly unstoppable and to me, totally misplaced."

Who Are You Mad At: My Selfie, Or Yourself?On a Tuesday night recently (or Wednesday morning), circa 4am, I woke up inexplicably, extremely alert and unable to get back to sleep. T...

So it seems strange, almost, that in a culture with so many people self-concious about self portraits, Cop Selfies is getting such a postive response.

Are police officers immune from selfie shame, or are the images simply so absurd that they're comedic?

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"Ican't stop looking at this new Tumblr CopSelfies andI have no idea why," wrote Death and Taxes' Alex Moore, pondering if "maybe it's because ithumanizes an archetype we're used to seeing as inhuman."

Something about this Cop-Selfies tumblr actually makes cops seem more human & multidimensional. Pretty refreshing: bit.ly/164aQqiYoni Riemer

cop selfies are unnerving because we KNOW cops are not people, and yet they share some of our most basic customs #tcot #gopafgncaap

There's vanity to be found in power, power flexed. copselfies.tumblr.comKennedy Ryan

Let us be plain: Cops are comic objects. And not just in film, not just in comedies. They are comic objects, period. copselfies.tumblr.comJiska

Come on admit it if you were a cop you'd take selfies too (P.S. we all take selfies)Silvia Killingsworth

The blog has been posting prolifically for days now, but it stands to reason that not all of the selfies will remain up. There is evidence on Twitter that some police officers and citizens are unimpressed with the project.

I was featured on a tumblr page for Cop selfies... baha! pic.twitter.com/33palswuJFRae

Attn @wacopolice RT @BuzzFeed: Cop Selfies is the best tumblr ever --> copselfies.tumblr.com pic.twitter.com/dlCjwZqZSnHeather McAnear

For their part, copselfies has volunteered to remove the images of any officer who contacts the site's administrators.

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What are your thoughts on police officers taking self portraits? Are cop selfies inappropriate, or simply a harmless sign of our times? Weight in below.

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