I’m not sure if social media in general has gotten less fun to be on, but I know for sure that Instagram has definitely changed. What once was an app with a carefree vibe, is now one that feels dark due to judgment and monitoring spirits. 

The judgment comes from all of the people who have a hive mentality and who seek the phrase, “monkey see monkey do.” If one person, usually one with influence, says that something isn’t cool, all of sudden everyone believes the same thing.

I also think that because people are so desperate for clout, they are willing to do anything, even if it means humiliating someone else or exploiting themselves for views. Due to this, many people refrain from posting certain things in fear that the posts would go viral and be ridiculed. It really takes the fun out of things.  

Obviously, you can do as you please, but can you really when virality is so sporadic? One harmless video could attract the attention of hundreds of thousands of people and it would change your life forever, especially if you receive lots of hate. I’ve seen it happen one too many times. 

The rise of spam pages is proof that Instagram is not the place for self expression like how it used to be. Many people no longer feel safe to voice their opinions, show their personality or post whatever they want to on their main accounts. Spam pages, to me, is where a person’s true identity is found. Main accounts are performative and restrictive, but spam accounts are an open space. 

To make matters even worse for Instagram, it has become haunted, not by ghouls, but rather monitoring spirits. If this term sounds dark to you, it’s because it lowkey is. A monitoring spirit in regard to social media is someone who lurks on your social media, but never engages with your posts. They see everything. They never miss a beat, but they’re just there. I believe that these types of followers are either envious, nosy or obsessive. There is no in between. All of which are traits of a weirdo. 

Another reason why Instagram is dreadful to be on, is the bots. They’re literally everywhere. You can’t hide from them. They spread misinformation, incite more conflict amongst users and are simply annoying. Sometimes it’s obvious when a social media account is a bot, but not always and while Twitter seems to have more bots than any other app, I think Instagram has its fair share too. 

All of the issues I’ve named so far is why Instagram is such a vibe-kill app. I’m not sure when Instagram morphed into hell, but I can definitely feel a huge shift in its vibe, especially as someone who has had an Instagram since about 8th grade. 

There have been so many times where I was close to deleting my Instagram account because of how uneasy it can feel, but I never go through with it. If anything, I go on a monthly hiatus, but I always come back. I still have friends on my Instagram so that’s one reason why I stay. Other reasons are because it’s one of the largest apps to stay connected with people and some people’s content is interesting to engage with. Perhaps others feel the same way. 

Maybe it’s not the app itself, maybe it’s humans. Have humans become an apathetic, stalkerish, rageful and exploitative species? Or has it always been this way except now these traits are amplified? Too much time in the digital world makes you lose touch with reality and perhaps we’re seeing the effects of this more than ever now. What a nightmare. 
Amyri Jones is a 22-year-old digital advertising and religious studies senior from Baton Rouge.