By Joyner Gross, Staff Writer
When scrolling through Instagram, you will often see many “finsta” posts. A “finsta” is a fake Instagram, or something the kids these days consider an outlet for venting to their followers and posting more personal things than they would on their “rinsta,” or real Instagram.
“I think finsta’s are meant for posting things you’d only share with friends,” junior Kaley Patton said. “Generally they are funny and interesting, especially if you know the person really well.”
The finsta craze has mainly taken over teenage Instagram users and is gradually spreading. According to Pew Research Center, around forty percent of teens feel pressure to post content that makes them look good to others, so having a finsta takes the pressure off of posting the perfect picture with the perfect caption.
“I use my finsta to keep up with people and I get to talk about the problems that I have in a judgement free zone,” junior Kate Ginn said. The point is to keep your followers personal and therefore most “finstas” will have a much smaller amount of followers than a “rinsta.”
“I originally made my finsta because I saw a ton of other people making finstas and it looked like a really fun thing to do,” Ginn said. “It took some getting used to but once you get the hang of it it’s a great place to go to just to get some things off your chest.”
Fifty-two percent of 13 to 17 year olds in America have an Instagram account, which goes to show how popular Instagram is. Chances are, you or your friends have an account and when everyone you know follows your “rinsta,” you may have the urge to make sure your Instagram account is the best it can be, which can be stressful at times.
“I am considering getting a fake instagram because I think I could have a really funny account that I could share with my friends,” Patton said. “They seem like something I would enjoy and it would be much lower maintenance than my real account.”
The main problem that could arise is competition to have the most finsta followers or pressure to make your finsta posts interesting. Teenagers generally find ways to make social media even more complicated than before and finstas might become that way.
“I currently do not feel pressure to make my finsta posts that cool or funny and that is one of the main reasons as to why I have one,” Ginn said. “I think the most important reason why people started having two instagram accounts in the first place was so that they did not have to worry about the same issues they have on rinstas, an example is worrying about what their followers think.”
While some may hate the idea of a “finsta,” they seem to be bringing down the anxiety that comes with a real Instagram account and considering what everyone else thinks when they see it. Overall, they are good for teens these days and will hopefully bring down the expectations that come with social media accounts.
Photo from Safe Smart Social.