Instagram users will see less political content in their feeds — if that’s what they want.
The Meta-owned social media company announced that political content will be automatically restricted from posts people recommend in Explore, Reels, Feed Recommendations and Suggested Users. This will not affect the content of accounts someone follows.
Meta has been staying away from news-related and political content for some time due to concerns about the spread of misinformation, disinformation and extremism on platforms like Instagram.
Instagram just limits the political content you see. You can change this.
Change is complex. Election season is approaching in the world’s largest democracy, and this appears to be Meta’s way of limiting rampant misinformation. Instagram defines political content as “potential references to government, electoral, or social topics that affect a group of people and/or society as a whole.” As Mashable’s Christianna Silva reports, “Social media sites have been rife with misinformation and disinformation in past elections. Meta’s response to these egregious errors appears to have been to keep political content on its platform becomes even rarer.”
But as critics point out, social media giants are also critical to informing, keeping communities engaged, and keeping users informed about the factors that truly affect people around the world. Instagram, for example, has been flagged for banning critical information about the humanitarian crisis in Gaza, and there are now fears that posts about issues affecting marginalized groups will be overshadowed on the platform. And, as some outlets pointed out, Instagram’s definition of “political” language is also vague, meaning the restrictions have the potential to impact content about women’s rights, climate change, race and LGBTQ issues.
For many, non-political content is a privilege: not having to engage with the issues facing the world is a choice in itself, but not an option for everyone.
The choice is up to the user and you can decide for yourself by going to Instagram settings.Many users find that their content preferences have changed auto configuration Restricting political content furthers the idea that Instagram is trying to prevent users from accessing such content. Here’s how to fix it.
How to Get Around Instagram’s Political Content Restrictions
Step 1: Click on the three bars in the upper right corner of your profile.
Step 2: Scroll down or search for “Content Preferences.”
Step 3: Click on “Political Content”.
Image source: Instagram
Step 4: Select “Unrestricted”: This option ensures that political content is still recommended.
Image source: Instagram