What is Instagram?

GGizmo

GGizmo

GGizmo

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I'm going to come across like an old guy with this question. But what exactly is Instagram?

I thought it was a platform where people just posted pictures, mostly of themselves. But reading a BBC article it appears its projected to overtake Twitter as a news source.

Instagram 'will overtake Twitter as a news source'
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/technology-53050959

So who has an Instagram account here? And what do you do with it?
 
Overtaking Twitter as a news source doesn’t make it a good news source!

That’s like saying Burger King is going to overtake McDonalds as a source of gourmet cuisine!
 
I've not really seen Instagram used as a news source - somewhat as an outlet for people's opinion on the news but that isn't generally what I've seen it used for or use it for myself.
 
Social media should not be a main source of news.

I take it they are regulated differently to the main stream media i.e. TV and papers, if so then regulation is going to cause social media a massive headach.
 
^You'd be surprised how many news stories start breaking on twitter before any news agency picks them up. There's a reason you see so many quoted tweets in articles these days.

I have an instagram but purely for following others, I haven't posted on it for years. It's no different to any other platform like facebook/youtube/twitter, people post content about stuff that interests them, be it news, travelling, fashion, themselves or tech. Instagram just happens to be the 'cool' one at the moment, like twitter/snapchat/facebook were, although ticktok might overtake it soon.
 
Search is underrated. I use it as a weather/busyness app. Search for where you want to go, and have a nose.

Also handy for ideas and inspiration of all kinds.
 
montymint said:
I have instagram but I only use it to follow artists I like, as it's a place they tend to share a lot of work
Click to expand...

Yeah same, I follow a lot of European graffiti artists and they only post stuff on the 'gram.

My kids say "the 'gram" I do it generally only to embarrass them.
 
I have wondered about this too. When you take photos or draw art and post them on the internet:

- In what situations/examples do you upload to Instagram?
- In what situations/examples do you upload to deviantART?
- In what situations/examples do you upload to Flickr?
- In what situations/examples do you upload to Wordpress?
- In what situations/examples do you upload to Pinterest?
- In what situations/examples do you upload to Imgur?

Ok I know Wordpress is geared towards blogs and Imgur is for hot-linking, but in what examples would you use the other 4? Facebook and Twitter as well. Pinterest kinda annoys me because I see pictures on there that have been pinched from other sites, and the uploader is often shy to cite the original source and I want to know where it comes from so that I can see more pictures. The reason why it annoys me is because I have paid for commissions on dA and a couple of them have wound up on Pinterest, again with no link-back to the dA artist.

There is absolutely NO way that I would regard Facebook and Instragram as news providers though!
 
I share my historical weapons collection on there, learn more about amateur photography in the process and connect with fellow history geeks. I also sell a little bit as followers sometimes ask for items. There are nice little communities for all sorts of hobbies and interests on Instagram - and no celebrities or selfies unless you choose to see them by following the more vacuous accounts.
 
mrbell1984 said:
I don't see how Instagram can be a news source.
Click to expand...

As with all social platforms, what it is depends on who you follow and how you use it.

If you largely follow friends and those friends are active users then it can absolutely be a news source. And by news, they don't mean an article with quotes from experts, they mean breaking stories. I read the news but I'm way more likely to stumble across something on Instagram than BBC News because I visit the latter maybe twice a day, whereas I frequent Instagram probably half a dozen times for odd 2 minute stints, usually whilst taking a dump. I imagine the average user spends a lot more time on the platform than me, though.

I found out about the flooding in Bristol back in March on Instagram whilst away on holiday, for example, because a local account posted/shared footage of it. Same with the Colston Statue being toppled. Some guy in the US effectively live streamed a mall shooting (that he carried out) and that was therefore the primary news source, even for "traditional" news outlets.
 
Russinating said:
As with all social platforms, what it is depends on who you follow and how you use it.

If you largely follow friends and those friends are active users then it can absolutely be a news source. And by news, they don't mean an article with quotes from experts, they mean breaking stories. I read the news but I'm way more likely to stumble across something on Instagram than BBC News because I visit the latter maybe twice a day, whereas I frequent Instagram probably half a dozen times for odd 2 minute stints, usually whilst taking a dump. I imagine the average user spends a lot more time on the platform than me, though.

I found out about the flooding in Bristol back in March on Instagram whilst away on holiday, for example, because a local account posted/shared footage of it. Same with the Colston Statue being toppled.
Click to expand...

Well in that case then all online platforms can be a news source.
 
explicit4u said:
^You'd be surprised how many news stories start breaking on twitter before any news agency picks them up. There's a reason you see so many quoted tweets in articles these days.

I have an instagram but purely for following others, I haven't posted on it for years. It's no different to any other platform like facebook/youtube/twitter, people post content about stuff that interests them, be it news, travelling, fashion, themselves or tech. Instagram just happens to be the 'cool' one at the moment, like twitter/snapchat/facebook were, although ticktok might overtake it soon.
Click to expand...
yea good during wars for breaking news, but it's also easily manipulated and full of fake crap
 
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