It is a super election year that rarely happens: elections will take place in over 60 countries around the world in 2024 - including important ones such as the presidential election in the USA and India. And: More and more people are using social networks to obtain political information. But after the trouble of the last few years, Meta seems to have had enough: Politics is being deliberately reduced in the Instagram feed.

Specifically, it’s about the suggestion function. For some time now, Instagram has not only consisted of content from accounts that you follow. Instead, the algorithm automatically mixes content into the feeds that the relevant user might like - based on the respective preferences and popularity of the content. But when it comes to politics, this can quickly become a trap.

When it comes to political opinions, you primarily click on two types of content: those you agree with - and those you are upset about. This has a noticeable effect in algorithm-driven social media. People then primarily see topics that divide. And because the nuances are missing, they may not even notice it.

The new measure is intended to curb this effect. It ensures that political suggestions largely disappear from the feed. But you don't have to miss out on political accounts that you follow: they will continue to be displayed as normal. If you are interested in a party, individual politicians or certain political issues, you can follow them further.

One detail shows how serious Instagram is about the protective measure: Hiding political content is not an option that you have to turn on yourself - but is activated in waves for all accounts. To see whether your political content is being restricted and, if so, to turn it back on, proceed as follows:

What: Instagram, Time