/ December 10, 2021

Instagram is bringing back its chronological feed in 2022

/ December 10, 2021

Instagram is bringing back its chronological feed in 2022

Words: Eva O’Beirne

2016 called and it’s making a comeback.

Head of Instagram, Adam Mosseri, confirmed to the US Congress this week that the site has been working on adding a chronological option to the Instagram app “for months”. The social media app hopes to launch the feature sometime “in the first quarter of next year.”

Due to claims made by a Facebook whistle-blower, the U.S government has cracked down on the company. Frances Haugen, a former product manager on Facebook’s civic integrity team, came forward last month with evidence that Facebook frequently chooses profit over it’s users safety and knew that Instagram was “toxic” for children.

Currently, Instagram uses AI to create what it considers a more personalized feed, based on users’ activity. 

Mosseri testified before Congress this week due to concerns around Instagram and child safety. One of the topics that repeatedly came up during the testimony is how Instagram might be addictive for users. Instagram’s algorithm was cited as a reason for it’s addictiveness.

The chronological feed option will be part of numerous features Instagram is rolling out to increase user safety.

Instagram has recently launched the “Take a Break” feature it started testing last month to users in the US and other English-speaking countries. The opt-in feature prompts users to pause using the app after they’ve been using it for a certain time period.

More parental controls over their teenagers’ use of Instagram will be released next year, Mosseri said on Tuesday.

Elsewhere on District: Iveagh Market roof is about to collapse from damage caused by Storm Barra