I always wondered about this.... in the beginning of instagram, i would follow maybe 30, 40 people, open it 2-3 times per day, and every time there would be 3-5 new photos of random stuff taken by those people (lunch/dinner plates, views from the window, beer glass on the bar, whatever).
Years later, i would follow 200 people, and i would open instagram once per day and all i'd see were random peoples photos and videos (reels? i don't know what they're called anymore), some from international influences, some like stuff that can be found on 9gag, etc. Even if i switched to "following", there would maybe be 1 photo made by a person I actually followed.
Did the algorithm make people stop posting their personal daily stuff? Did people change?
I guess it's even worse now, but i've uninstalled it a few years ago.
> Did the algorithm make people stop posting their personal daily stuff?
Not totally[0] but you'd almost never know it because of all the ads and other junk that Instagram insists you see before the stuff you actually want to see.
(see also YouTube, Facebook, etc.)
[0] although I know a few people who have either limited or stopped posting because they feel there's no point if people don't get to see it. Me, I post for myself (and future historians) and if other people see it, grand.
They really did worsen the ratio on Instagram: firstly, it's one ad per every two posts, secondly at least one of the two non-ad posts will be a "suggested" one unless you sleep those. You can't turn it off permanently, of course.
I do also think the novelty of posting about your life has worn off.
Years later, i would follow 200 people, and i would open instagram once per day and all i'd see were random peoples photos and videos (reels? i don't know what they're called anymore), some from international influences, some like stuff that can be found on 9gag, etc. Even if i switched to "following", there would maybe be 1 photo made by a person I actually followed.
Did the algorithm make people stop posting their personal daily stuff? Did people change?
I guess it's even worse now, but i've uninstalled it a few years ago.