Instagram. It’s one of the most popular social media platforms today, yet it is increasingly being used less for social media and more for personal promotion. “Finstas” are opening a new chapter in social media. They function as a fake Instagram, a place for shared posts to be more relaxed in comparison to a normal account. Finstas are very odd and full of quirky content one will not normally see on a “Rinsta” account.
People often times only allow their closest friends to follow their finstas (disclaimer: some females do have triple digit follower counts). This brings out more honest and personal ways to post, often worsening the quality of the feed. However, every once in awhile a post may receive comments like “Rinsta-worthy” or “Rinsta this,” letting the user know that this is a quality post that is similar to his or her “Rinsta” feed. People commonly post how they are feeling about school, what is stressing them out, or simply what is on their mind. A select few people are well-known for their finstas and how funny their accounts are (within each friend group of course). Finstas show the real side of people – or as much as they feel comfortable sharing.
“Finsta allows me to channel my true desires among my closest friends,” said senior Rohan Gurram. “Request me @rocainethedopeman.”
Finstas offer a reality check that people’s lives are not as perfect as their normal Instagram accounts make it seem, but why is this necessary? Why do people feel the need to show a disguise to so many, and only show their true self to so few?
This Instagram revolution speaks to the ever-increasing impression that people try very hard to create a picture perfect life on their social media.With advertising, Photoshop, and new forms of social media, people’s views of beauty and everyday life are becoming harder to live up to. Images like Justin Bieber’s Calvin Klein ad #mycalvins put tremendous pressure on tweens, teens, and young adults. People therefore are inclined to only show the perfect side of their life on social media, making sure that every little detail is perfectly portrayed before sharing. This creates an increasingly dangerous cycle because as the world is flooded with more Biebers, it only creates a greater feeling of necessity for others to create their own facade.
The answer to this crushing cycle are Finstas. Because Finstas begin to show a true view of people’s lives-the good, the bad, and the funny- others may begin to feel less and less pressure to create a perfect social media page. Although they can’t fix the problem entirely, Finstas are an awesome step in the right direction.
