Up until this summer, my Instagram feed was a mish mash of posts from friends, travel, dogs, sports and entertainment, and one or two news feeds. I curated my feed so that it matched my interests, and I was only seeing what I wanted to see. The “explore” page of my Instagram also matched my feed, though because those recommendations came through a programmed algorithm, it didn’t match exactly what I wanted. I would see posts that I would roll my eyes at, but somehow, Instagram’s algorithm thought because I liked one thing, I would like another. 

Then over the course of the summer, my Instagram started to include more posts and accounts that inspire social change. This is because I started following more accounts that inspire social change. With the death of George Floyd, and the Black Lives Matter protests, I made a promise that I was going to become more educated, and that was going to include what I see on my social feeds. So I started following more educational accounts (so you want to talk about…, Shifting the Culture, the slacktivists, Attn: White People, and Check Your Privilege to simply name a few). I still have my dog and travel accounts, but now I’m also using my feed as an educational tool. And for awhile, the Explore page on my Instagram was reflecting those changes. 

According to Hootsuite, “Instagram’s algorithm is based on machine learning, so the way it ranks your posts is constantly evolving.” And it ranks your posts based on three aspects: relationship, interest, and timeliness. The interest is “If users have enjoyed certain types of posts in the past, the algorithm is more likely to show that type of post to them in the future.” I think sometimes the line drawn between what might be interesting is very thin.

Much like we discussed during the seminar, you do one thing on Instagram, and all of a sudden, it thinks that’s all you want to see. I noticed that when I did the mass follows during the summer; Instagram was recommending more educational accounts, which I appreciated because it then allowed me to find more accounts to follow. But now, my Explore page has gone back to more “superficial” posts. Since I’m not interacting with accounts and posts on a regular basis, there is a question of why they’re choosing the posts they’re choosing to show up on that page. 

But that’s the give and take when it comes to using social media (but it’s not even exclusive to social media); I have made my choices, but there’s still going to be someone else presenting me with choices they think I may like. Those who program the algorithms are never going to get it just right. Those that program these algorithms are going to have biases, whether they be implicit or explicit. And Instagram knows they need to do better when it comes to their algorithms. During summer 2020 in the middle of the Black Lives Matter protests, Instagram made a commitment to doing better racially. From Vox, “Instagram will create an “equity team” charged with tasks like analyzing the enforcement of its harassment policies and studying its algorithms for racial bias.” Whether or not they continue to change as they say they will is something that remains to be seen.

All that being said, I’m also aware that I am a white woman using this app, and others, made by white men, and programmed by a majority of white people (also men). My experience using this app, and others, is going to be vastly different than a person of color, and it’s important to keep that in mind. I can continue to educate with the help of various Instagram accounts, but I also need to recognize that Instagram itself has work to do.