Instagram shuffles hashtag content in a new test that removes its ‘recent’ tab

Image: Instagram

A new test could make it harder to see recent content in the app. The test will only allow you to see the posts with the most likes or short videos related to the hashtag. The company says it will mix recent and timely content in the two groups to see how people respond to it.

When they were first introduced on the photo sharing app, it was a fun way to highlight photo trends, but now they are mainly a way for users to get more visibility, and hence, more clicks and likes. The top posts tab shows popular posts, while the recent posts tab shows content in the order it was posted.

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

Despite negative reactions from users who prefer seeing their timelines in chronological order, social media apps continue to rely on algorithms to show users more varied content. With apps like TikTok sucking away users and attention, and even becoming more popular than YouTube for Android users, there is a need to make Reels a natural alternative to viewing photos.

Changes in other platforms have been influenced by figuring out ways for users to interact with more system-sorted content. After a few days, the change to default users to an algorithmic timeline was reversed.

It will be interesting to see how this change affects what users see on the photo sharing service.