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r4chel_lee's review against another edition
informative
reflective
medium-paced
3.5
Interesting information about the story of instagram. Definitely paints Facebook and Mark Zuckerberg as the bad guy. Might not be untrue, but sometimes felt too overbearing. Really interesting considering the potential tik tok ban and what that could again mean for social media and society.
kristinshafel's review against another edition
challenging
informative
reflective
sad
medium-paced
4.5
bargainsleuth's review against another edition
3.0
For this and other book reviews, visit www.bargain-sleuth.com
I’ve got a love/hate relationship with social media. I recognize the need for it for my blog to reach more people, but I don’t necessarily only want more followers on a particular platform: I want people to read the blog. So it’s a double-edged sword. I strive for more followers in the hopes that they click through to the content, not just give me a “like”. My camera is old and takes marginal photos, so Instagram has never been a big thing for me. I also don’t seem to have a lot of dried or artificial flowers and teacups and other props that I see on many bookstagram posts, so I know I’m way out of my league and don't even attempt to compete. And Instagram is owned by Facebook, which I also have some issues with. But I live with four kids who are Gen Z and the two that are old enough are all about Insta. What’s their story?
No Filter: The Inside Story of Instagram obviously focuses on the inside story of the social media giant. The who, what, where, when and why the app was created, how it evolved, and the influence it has on society today. I have to say that because I’m rather ambivalent about Instagram as an app, I kind of felt that way about this book, too. It just wasn’t as interesting to me as if the author would have also focused on the “outside” story of Instagram as well.
It was interesting to read about Facebook’s takeover of the company, and instead of shutting Instagram down, the social media giant let it function without too much oversight. That is, until Instagram neared a billion followers. As with Facebook, there are ethical questions that arise when involving content moderation and the use of “influencers.” In a capitalist country, it’s always important to follow the money to get the whole story.
No Filter relies on exclusive access to Instagram founders, as well as employees and competitors to the social media giant. It also relies on information from influencers of all types. This book also reveals how some people strategize their use of Instagram and how they do it. What this book ultimately tells us, is that like Facebook, Instagram has fundamentally changed how people interact with each other in society, for better or worse.
I’ve got a love/hate relationship with social media. I recognize the need for it for my blog to reach more people, but I don’t necessarily only want more followers on a particular platform: I want people to read the blog. So it’s a double-edged sword. I strive for more followers in the hopes that they click through to the content, not just give me a “like”. My camera is old and takes marginal photos, so Instagram has never been a big thing for me. I also don’t seem to have a lot of dried or artificial flowers and teacups and other props that I see on many bookstagram posts, so I know I’m way out of my league and don't even attempt to compete. And Instagram is owned by Facebook, which I also have some issues with. But I live with four kids who are Gen Z and the two that are old enough are all about Insta. What’s their story?
No Filter: The Inside Story of Instagram obviously focuses on the inside story of the social media giant. The who, what, where, when and why the app was created, how it evolved, and the influence it has on society today. I have to say that because I’m rather ambivalent about Instagram as an app, I kind of felt that way about this book, too. It just wasn’t as interesting to me as if the author would have also focused on the “outside” story of Instagram as well.
It was interesting to read about Facebook’s takeover of the company, and instead of shutting Instagram down, the social media giant let it function without too much oversight. That is, until Instagram neared a billion followers. As with Facebook, there are ethical questions that arise when involving content moderation and the use of “influencers.” In a capitalist country, it’s always important to follow the money to get the whole story.
No Filter relies on exclusive access to Instagram founders, as well as employees and competitors to the social media giant. It also relies on information from influencers of all types. This book also reveals how some people strategize their use of Instagram and how they do it. What this book ultimately tells us, is that like Facebook, Instagram has fundamentally changed how people interact with each other in society, for better or worse.
naddie_reads's review against another edition
4.0
Guess I've been on a tech industry kick when it comes to my non-fiction reads these days; between "No Filter", "Burn Book" & "The Age of Surveillance Capitalism", I've pretty much made up my mind that most founders of the social media & tech industry don't particularly care about their main users. As "No Filter" demonstrates throughout the book, founders may have started with the best of intentions, but oftentimes when growth (read: profit) comes into the picture and takes over it completely, most of those good intentions would fly out the window because the founders would rather profit than bear the consequences of their actions.
This was a revelatory read about the conception and growth of Instagram, which was acquired by $1B by Facebook soon after it became a threat to FB's growth. It shows how the founders started with a creative vision of what IG should be but ended with the two co-founders stepping down from their posts after IG's independence was threatened following FB's need to control the app more and more down the line. The IG founders weren't completely innocent either; in their quest for profit, they shortchanged their earlier employees when they decided to sell to FB, which meant they reaped what they sowed.
There's not a lot of new info for those who have followed the Silicon Valley drama over the years, but since I don't particularly pay attention to the news and opted to read about such details in books instead, "No Filter" was great in the way it presented the sequence of events and the consequences of these techies' actions. These consequences were largely borne by the users of the app: the constant comparison to others' lives produced insecurity, and the trend of influencers made others try to emulate their success by using artificial means to grow their accounts (buying followers, using apps/groups to boost their posts, etc.), the leak of private information to third parties (which is more insidious since FB owns IG & Whatsapp), the growth of the attention economy thanks to the proliferation of such apps & the way these apps' algorithms has tremendous influence in shaping how we behave...
Ever since Oct 7th, I'm sure we've all seen how such algorithms and apps can shape the narrative of how things are perceived, which should concern everyone. That said, there are times when such apps are useful to disseminate alternative information compared to what is usually paddled in the MSMs, but it is increasingly obvious that we need to sift through such info ourselves to ensure we don't fall for the same algorithm trick and confirmation bias behaviours which led to Trump being elected back in 2018. If nothing else, "No Filter" is a good reminder that we need to have constant vigilance over what we give our attention, time & money to.
This was a revelatory read about the conception and growth of Instagram, which was acquired by $1B by Facebook soon after it became a threat to FB's growth. It shows how the founders started with a creative vision of what IG should be but ended with the two co-founders stepping down from their posts after IG's independence was threatened following FB's need to control the app more and more down the line. The IG founders weren't completely innocent either; in their quest for profit, they shortchanged their earlier employees when they decided to sell to FB, which meant they reaped what they sowed.
There's not a lot of new info for those who have followed the Silicon Valley drama over the years, but since I don't particularly pay attention to the news and opted to read about such details in books instead, "No Filter" was great in the way it presented the sequence of events and the consequences of these techies' actions. These consequences were largely borne by the users of the app: the constant comparison to others' lives produced insecurity, and the trend of influencers made others try to emulate their success by using artificial means to grow their accounts (buying followers, using apps/groups to boost their posts, etc.), the leak of private information to third parties (which is more insidious since FB owns IG & Whatsapp), the growth of the attention economy thanks to the proliferation of such apps & the way these apps' algorithms has tremendous influence in shaping how we behave...
Ever since Oct 7th, I'm sure we've all seen how such algorithms and apps can shape the narrative of how things are perceived, which should concern everyone. That said, there are times when such apps are useful to disseminate alternative information compared to what is usually paddled in the MSMs, but it is increasingly obvious that we need to sift through such info ourselves to ensure we don't fall for the same algorithm trick and confirmation bias behaviours which led to Trump being elected back in 2018. If nothing else, "No Filter" is a good reminder that we need to have constant vigilance over what we give our attention, time & money to.
oanaduma's review against another edition
informative
inspiring
lighthearted
reflective
relaxing
medium-paced
4.5
chaptersnchatter's review against another edition
5.0
Lessons and morals aside, the writing is absolutely fascinating.
ljutavidra's review against another edition
5.0
"“We tried really hard to do that, to be a force for good.” But 1 billion users later, the app they developed to have tremendous cultural influence has been mixed up in a corporate struggle over personality, pride, and priorities. If Facebook’s history is any guide, the real cost of the acquisition will fall on Instagram’s users."
Ova knjiga je opomena za sve buduće društvene mreže. Tužno je bilo pratiti kako je nečiji san propao i kako je morao da napusti svoju sopstvenu kompaniju zbog novca i gramzivosti pojedinaca. Vidi se i pad u kvalitetu Instagrama baš kada su njegovi kreatori digli ruke od svega. Neki bi rekli da je ova priča propala iste sekunde kad su se prodali Fejsbuku. Da li bi uspeli ovoliko da nisu to uradili? To ne možemo nikako znati.
Ova knjiga je opomena za sve buduće društvene mreže. Tužno je bilo pratiti kako je nečiji san propao i kako je morao da napusti svoju sopstvenu kompaniju zbog novca i gramzivosti pojedinaca. Vidi se i pad u kvalitetu Instagrama baš kada su njegovi kreatori digli ruke od svega. Neki bi rekli da je ova priča propala iste sekunde kad su se prodali Fejsbuku. Da li bi uspeli ovoliko da nisu to uradili? To ne možemo nikako znati.