It’s election season in the U.S., and Instagram has changed the way that it recommends political content. On both Instagram and the newer X comp

How to turn off Instagram’s political content filter

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2024-03-29 12:00:03

It’s election season in the U.S., and Instagram has changed the way that it recommends political content. On both Instagram and the newer X competitor Threads, this change won’t impact what you see from accounts you already follow. But the platforms won’t proactively recommend content about politics, which could limit users’ ability to learn about political issues from people outside of their existing circles. This is especially impactful as Instagram’s algorithm shifts toward recommending more posts from accounts you don’t follow, especially Reels.

While some people might welcome a breather from politics, others find the changes alarming, since social media is a key tool for community organizing and disseminating information about current events. Plus, Instagram’s definition of political content is a bit broad — it describes political content as anything “potentially related to things like laws, elections, or social topics.”

Threads doesn’t currently have its own settings menu with these toggles — but if you change your preferences on Instagram, it should carry over to Threads, which is integrated within the app.