Instagram playing with fire again: removing Recent posts, but from a different page
On Instagram, when you tap on or search for a hashtag, the platform opens a page that lists content tagged with it which has three tabs: "Top," "Recent, and "Reels." Some users may have noticed that they no longer have the Recent filter. Don’t worry, this is a test that is available to only a small group of people.
The company tweeted, “We’re trying out some new things to make hashtags as valuable as possible for people. We want to see if this helps people connect with more interesting and relevant content on hashtags, while also keeping them across what's current."
It sounds like Instagram may be fine-tuning the algorithms for the Top tab to show posts that are both fresh and trending. It's possible that the Recent tab is the least used, which is why Instagram decided to check if there will be any change in user experience if it's removed entirely.
Only recently, Instagram introduced the option to switch back to a chronological feed, rather than have the algorithm cherry-pick posts, thus enabling users to keep up with everything new that is interesting to them. This made many people happy since they had been asking for that for a long time. But now, it wants to remove a feature that does exactly that, only on the hashtag pages.
Recently, Instagram announced that it is testing a new feature that will enable users to find and help social causes by using hashtags. The company stated in its announcement, “People often come to Instagram to make their voices heard, elevate causes and bring communities together. They’re eager to support causes they hear about on Instagram and are always looking for new ways to take action.”
When you find a cause that you wish to support, you may learn more about it by tapping on "Support" on the hashtag page. If you want to inform more people about this campaign, you can share the hashtag page via DM by hitting the "Spread the Word" button. Instagram also added a "Create a Fundraiser" feature, which will enable users to raise money for the cause.
For a small group, we’re testing more recent and timely content in ‘Top’ and ‘Reels’ tabs in hashtags, and removing the ‘Recent’ tab. We want to see if this helps people connect with more interesting and relevant content on hashtags, while also keeping them across what’s current. pic.twitter.com/nLb6BiFRws
— Instagram Comms (@InstagramComms) April 19, 2022
Of course, if the social media decides to make the change permanent, this could be upsetting for people who track the latest content associated with a specific hashtag. Removing the Recent tab is kind of a step backward.
Only recently, Instagram introduced the option to switch back to a chronological feed, rather than have the algorithm cherry-pick posts, thus enabling users to keep up with everything new that is interesting to them. This made many people happy since they had been asking for that for a long time. But now, it wants to remove a feature that does exactly that, only on the hashtag pages.
More changes to how we use hashtags
Recently, Instagram announced that it is testing a new feature that will enable users to find and help social causes by using hashtags. The company stated in its announcement, “People often come to Instagram to make their voices heard, elevate causes and bring communities together. They’re eager to support causes they hear about on Instagram and are always looking for new ways to take action.”
FCC OKs Cingular\'s purchase of AT&T Wireless
Things that are NOT allowed: