The main “feature” of Instagram was that it was free of politics, tribalism, and the news cycle. Then came the activists looking to leverage the captive audienc

The main “feature” of Instagram was that it was free of politics, tribalism, and the news cycle. Then came the activists looking to leverage the captive audiences and the attention of their friend circles for their cause. This change invited those of all causes and parties to participate, because to not do so would be to accept a marketing disadvantage. The political marketing war escalated quickly. Now Instagram has turned into the same cesspool other platforms have - whether it is YouTube or Twitter or Reddit or Facebook - with advanced campaigning, mass manipulation, etc. Like Twitter, it suffers due to the limited format - images allow for a charged newsbite and no nuance whatsoever. I’m starting to think any centralized platform that is very open to the public or doesn’t ban politics will ultimately decay once weaponized.