Instagram revolutionized the social media game. It came years after the end of MySpace and during the height of our moms, grandparents, dads, aunts and uncles invading Facebook. In an odd way, it became the social media haven for my generation; it allowed us to share embarrassing selfies, post somewhat funny quotes and socialize with our friends or people in our age group in a comfortable way. Initially, Instagram was not about the likes or the message of our post- it was meant to create a small bubble for us and our peers, family members and friends. Now, Instagram (like many things) has evolved into a platform for celebrities, political figures and most importantly, us. On the other hand, it has become a trigger for people struggling with body image and comparison problems, because we see the attractive models and we see all the good times people are having, therefore causing some of us to spiral into a vicious cycle of self doubt. Instagram is no longer the app that we post whenever we want and how much we want, but it has become our own personal algorithm of reaching certain views on stories, reaching a goal of how many likes and equating the quality of the comments to our self worth. With that being said, is the current Instagram even worth it? And most importantly, is it for enjoyment and connecting with others or has it become more like a social chore?
It all comes down to the simple fact that the purpose of the social media platform has changed. Currently, during the height of a pandemic and one of the most important elections, Instagram has been an amazing tool to educate, spread the right message and connect people who want to have those hard but important conversations. It provides resources for people and advocates for the well being of individuals. But, such posts and messages only come up on our phones, if that’s what we want to see. It has become such a helpful platform, yet at the same time, the original intent of the app is fading. The more posts I see about people’s Halloween costumes, their pets or whatever interesting activity they are partaking in, the more annoyed I oddly become, and I have learned I am not alone in this feeling. Everything seems repetitive, and I slowly begin to care less about the post a girl I talked to once in high school made. The app is no longer my small bubble with my favorite people, but it has become a social obligation to post at a certain time and to voice our opinions on important matters as if we have something to prove to our followers who are mainly composed of strangers or people we do not speak to anymore. The inclination to be active on Instagram is close to none now.
I really don’t see many posts anymore. No one is posting anything unique, and it seems like I have lacked any interest in other people’s lives. Everything has gotten increasingly repetitive, causing me to only scroll through Instagram once a day. Also, the app has gotten more overwhelming than ever before with the addition of private messaging, stories and reels. I feel like too much is going on, and Instagram has lost its individuality by combining other social media content into its own. For example, Facebook had the future of private messaging long before Instagram, and Snapchat created the concept of stories prior to Instagram as well. Same thing with TikTok and “reels”. This simply shows that social media platforms and its contents are being continuously recycled.
Maybe my friends and I are getting older, and Instagram is slowly becoming an old fashion way to communicate with others. Just like how Facebook is generally categorized to be for our parents generation and our fan base is made up of distant family and family friends. It is also funny to think about the new social media platforms that are coming about, especially TikTok. Maybe our kids will thrive on TikTok, or even a newer social media platform, and they will make fun of us for still using Instagram.