Insta-News: How the New York Times and Washington Post Use Instagram

Abstract

ABSTRACT As social media platforms increasingly gain institutional power within the media landscape, it is important to understand how news organizations are working within the platforms’ restrictions. The New York Times and Washington Post are two legacy publishers known worldwide for their high-quality print and digital content. As two highly followed accounts on Instagram, they make strong rationale for leading the way in how to use Instagram for other journalism outlets. As such, the following study quantitatively analyzes the content that each organization shared on their official Instagram accounts so that researchers and practitioners can better understand two examples of how to utilize the platform. Additionally, user responses to the content are discussed as they are essential in knowing what types of content should be highlighted. Findings demonstrate similarities and differences in approach in terms of topic, content type, visual approach, and more. In particular, each organization highlighted topics that were in line with their overall brands, with the Times focusing more soft news content and the Post highlighting politics and breaking news. Practical and theoretical implications are discussed in terms of algorithmic gatekeeping that integrates platform restrictions, user responses, and content types. Future avenues of research are outlined.