Ask McFartnuggets: “Is it Still a ‘Selfie’ if Other People Are in it?”

Dear McFartnuggets: 

I see a lot of people now taking selfies with other people in them. Now pardon my ignorance on the matter, but isn’t “selfie” short for “self portrait”? Usually self portraits are portraits of yourself, hence the fucking name. I’m at a loss here. At what point is a selfie not a selfie? Back in my day we would put a “camera” on a timer and then the person would run back and the timer would go off, and the camera would take a photo of everyone together. That wasn’t called a selfie, it wasn’t called a self portrait either. It was just a group photo. If people do this same thing just with their phone on a fucking pole in front of them isn’t that basically the same thing? Why is that a selfie and a camera on a timer not a selfie? If you painted a painting of yourself with other people is that a self portrait? -- Wilbur from Saskatoon, Saskatchewan

Dear Wilbur:

If you painted a painting of yourself in a group I think that could be considered a self portrait. I’m not entirely certain, however when it comes to photos, yes oddly enough you can take selfies with other people in it. Really the only thing that makes a photo a selfie is the fact that you’re taking it with the camera held in front of your face. You have to be holding it though, whether with your outstretched arm or a selfie stick. A selfie stick may seem like cheating and that might blur the lines a little, but it is still called a selfie stick. When smartphones are replaced with personal drone assistants and the drones take photos of people by verbal command, I think you might see the term selfie fade away. Or maybe it won’t and virtually any type of photo with yourself in it would be considered a selfie. I know it sounds stupid, that’s because it is. You have to get used to this shit though, it’s a sign of the changing times. You can swim against the current until you’re tired and drown or just let it carry you off into the Ocean of Dumbass that is today’s society.

Technically, everyone was in this selfie.

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