I’ll admit it. I waste an unbelievable amount of time considering the quality of my Facebook profile picture. I search for a photo that says, I’m exciting enough to friend request but safe enough for an employer to hire. I click through my own profile pictures probably more than all my friends combined. Your profile picture isn’t just another tagged photo; it’s a representation of your identity. It’s a tiny window for the casual Facebook stalker to get to know the real you. But this week, it’s all a lie.

For the past few days, Facebook users worldwide have taken part in Doppelganger Week: a time to change user profile pictures to that of an actor, athlete, musician or other quasi-famous person they resemble.

This Facebook phenomenon gets it name from the German word doppelganger, deriving from double (doppel) + goer (ganger). Merriam-Webster.com defines doppelganger as a ghostly counterpart of a living person, double, or alter ego. The idea of a figurative double was the theme of Joseph Conrad’s 1912 novel, ‘The Secret Sharer.’ The term is also the title of a 1993 romantic thriller starring Drew Barrymore, which the International Movie Database claims is up 132 percent in popularity this week (Google searching doppelganger anyone?).

Alejandra Nasser, a sophomore art history student, said a friend who changed his picture to Joseph Gordon-Levitt (‘500 Days of Summer’) had a close enough resemblance to the star that she wondered why her friend had a headshot as his photo. Nasser, however, chose not to participate. ‘As an ethnic person, there aren’t enough really famous minorities,’ she said. ‘People would just ask me why I didn’t use America Ferrera (‘Ugly Betty’).

Looking through my Mini-Feed of SU friends, I’ve found varying levels of success in my peers’ endeavors. Some people find surprisingly accurate look-alikes – the punky hipster who eerily resembles Ellen DeGeneres, a messy brunette matched with the perfect phase of Britney Spears’ breakdown. Others took a humorous approach by matching a scrawny white girl with a rags-to-riches rapper, or a devastatingly handsome heartthrob with a nerdy freshman. Some of my personal favorites have come from cartoon character look-alikes, like Mulan, Pocahontas and Tommy Pickles.

Still, not everyone is playing the game right. If your so-called doppelganger has topped Maxim’s Hot 100, you’re single and you aren’t trying to make a joke, re-evaluate your participation before accepting any friend requests.

If you’re struggling to find a twin, a recent article in the New York Daily News suggested readers check out sites like myhertitage.net or use the Facebook application Face Double to find an accurate portrayal. You could always just pick your idol and hope people think you’re a comedian and not a raving narcissist.

Blogs and online forums seem to have some controversy over when Doppelganger Week ends, but it seems like you’ve got a few more days. Make the most of your chance to escape reality and search for images of some B-list celebrities (let’s be real here, folks) for an identity change.

As for me, I’ve enjoyed the relief from my profile picture quest that’s come with having Aimee Teegarden (‘Friday Night Lights’) represent me, but I’m ready for this week to end. Facebook stalking is infinitely harder when profile pictures are fakes.

Courtney Egelston is a senior magazine journalism and political science major. Her column appears weekly and she can be reached at cbegelst@syr.edu.

Published on February 3, 2010 at 12:00 pm