After looking up Instagram in the three historical newspaper databases, I found information in the New York Times. Instagram was created in 2010 and originally there were some doubts, but as the New York Times article dating back to December 2010 states "We've been amazed with the growth of the service." Although, Instagram hasn't been around for too long, there has been substantial changes in the four years that it has existed. Originally, as stated in the New York Times, people believed Instagram could be used for the wrong purpose. There was belief, that cyber bullying could be an effect of Instagram due to kids' abilities to photo shop these days. However, once Instagram blew up from eight followers to one million rather quickly, people rapidly changed their mind about Instagram's true use. "Users collectively upload three photos a second, and tens of millions of photos have been shared on the service." Although there were small doubts at one point, all of those have diminished. Since the app has been created people have been addicted and not much has changed.
Today, Instagram has more than 200 million monthly users and 75 million users a day. After searching ProQuest, Project Muse, and JStor, I found very similar articles. Each article talked about how impressive Instagram's growth is and its maximal effect on society. An article i found searching on ProQuest called the Instagram Effect not only talks about how Instagram allows people to connect through images and videos, but how it can actually increase one's photography skills. Instagram comes with several settings to adjust the picture you want to post through filters. "The real allure of Instagram was its photo filters and the subsequent rise of filter culture. Filters help us see the world in a new way." Yes, Instagram is addicting, and yes people enjoy posting and looking at other peoples pictures and videos, but its effect on society is deeper than that. Photography and technological skills are improved every day, and this is important as our culture and society continues to evolve.
The way Instagram has been used over the past four years honestly hasn't changed too drastically. Originally, it was looked at as a cool way to share and comment on photos, but was quickly deemed to be more than that. Once the company jumped from 80 users to a million in just a couple months, people new it was the real deal. Whether its improving your photography skills or simply looking at Instagram to keep up with your social circle, Instagram has proven positive effects on society.
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