Ever wonder why teens are on Instagram like all the time?
Rather than only listening to what advertisers want to scare you into believing (such as in the article above), perhaps you had the slightest hunch that there’s more to this story…
Chances are that you might be a parent who—despite your best efforts—just doesn’t understand Instagram. In which case you’ve come to the right place!
If you’re a teen that wants to convince your parents that Instagram’s awesome (or at least to stop rolling their eyes), then you’re also in for an edumacational treat!
We’ll start with the most basic question to get everyone up to speed.
What is Instagram?
Instagram is a smartphone application that shares pictures and short videos. You can enhance your media, through various filters, and then post it.
It’s motto is Capture and Share the World’s Moments.
If you’re really old school, it’s like scrapbooking with your phone. For those of you more familiar with social media, the following comparisons might help:
Instagram is like Twitter where you accumulate followers and have short posts but with more of a visual focus. Much like Facebook, you get notifications about your friends’ activities and can “like” or comment on whatever they post.
For example, this sunset took me less than a minute to post on Instagram.
Why teens (and everyone else) love it
The following three features make Instagram especially attractive:
- Simple
- Free
- Beautiful.
These days, nearly everyone and their grandma has a smartphone. It’s also not hard to see that a lot more people carry their phones around instead of a camera. That’s what makes it special—you can easily capture and then share irreplaceable moments with your friends.
These can be funny, cute, avant garde, and often breathtaking.
For teens specifically, these can include incredible travel and volunteer moments.
There’s more to these posts than just beauty or novelty—Instagram is a media blog that connects people with similar values and interests.
Many young people also use Instagram to challenge stereotypes, such as Paola Mathé’s pictures, which got featured in this Huffington Post article:
Young People Use Gorgeous Instagram Pics To Show There’s More To Haiti Than Poverty.
Like any social platform, there are positive ways to use it, and there are times when it’s only a distraction. Now that you know, try not to get addicted yourself!
Contributed by Nick Fochtman
