Up until recently, social media users had a problem: there were very few places on the internet that prided themselves on authenticity. Everywhere people were trying to be funnier, prettier, and more interesting than others, instead of focusing on the realities of their life.
This was the dilemma that prompted the creation of BeReal, the app that demands its users take a photo of whatever is happening in their lives at a random time of day. A lot of the time, this just means that those who use it get a lot of pictures of mundane things like their friends' offices, or grocery shops. Every so often, though, the notification goes off at the wildest time possible. While it's true that sometimes people try to game the system when it comes to taking the most interesting BeReal, there are plenty of cases of (un)fortunate timing that have made their viral mark. Also, it makes for a perfect meme format. What more could we ask from a gimmick platform?
