Instagram CEO Discourages Posting of News and Political Content on Threads

Meta’s Threads app, which was introduced with great excitement this week, has been positioned as a direct rival to Elon Musk’s Twitter. Nevertheless, Adam Mosseri, the head of Instagram, has made statements that imply the app might not directly challenge Twitter, particularly in terms of the shared content on the platform.

In a Threads conversation with The Verge, Meta’s Adam Mosseri stated that Threads does not encourage hard news or political debate. He said the “additional engagement or revenue” generated by these topics would not be worth the integrity and security risks.

And that’s why Mosseri said Threads’ “goal is not to replace Twitter,” but to “create a public square for Instagram communities that never embraced Twitter.” He notes that Threads is a “less angry place for conversations.”

Mosseri added: “Politics and hard news are inevitably going to be on Threads — they’re also on Instagram to some extent — but we’re not going to do anything to encourage those industries.”

Also, as has become clear, Meta – as a whole – has tried to move away from the news. “We also look at things like post comments to determine if a post is political in nature and take steps to prevent people from seeing multiple political posts in a row,” Meta said in a blog post last year.

It’s worth noting that major publications like The Wall Street Journal, CNN, and the BBC have already established a significant presence on Meta’s newest platform, and discussions about politics and hard news are already taking place.

It’s also undeniable that a large number of Instagram users who have decided to try Threads may not be interested in its “hard news” content. Most people might see it as a way to connect with friends and family, and given Instagram’s recent focus on news and entertainment – it might not be considered a political platform.