Fabulous Falcon Finstas

Everyone knows what Instagram is. But have you ever heard of a “fake Instagram?” “Finsta” (as the kids are calling it) is the next new social media outlet that this young generation uses as a form of expression. So what is the difference between a real Instagram and a Finsta? These CB students share why they love using Finsta.

Mariel Dozier (’17) uses Finsta as a way to share stories about events that happen in her life to only her closest friends.

“The technical term for Finsta is a ‘fake Instagram’ but I call it a ‘fun Instagram,'” she shared. “It’s basically an Instagram where you post anything you want and it’s only for a certain number of people.”

“People make Finstas because on your real Instagram with your 1000 followers you have to be pretty… pretty,” she laughed. “You have to post high quality photos with great captions. On Finsta you get to kind of post whatever you want and just like talk about your life,” Mariel explained.

Alex Cerezo (’17) agreed that a Finsta is only for close friends to see.

“You can post whatever you want on and you don’t really have to worry about what people are going to think about it because you only let your close friends and people you trust follow you,” she shared.

The main difference between a regular Instagram page and a “Finsta,” is the content posted. People on finsta post whatever they want as Donya Airola (’17) expressed.

“Finsta arrived and it was just the perfect place to express my feelings and my angers and everything and post memes,” she explained.

Donya went on explain the difference between a regular Instagram and a Finsta.

“Real Instagram and fake Instagram are very different. Insta is where your highest quality pictures go to be posted and Finsta is where the lowest quality pictures go to be posted,” she laughed. “On Instagram you have a lot more followers, it’s all edited pictures, you’re looking good you’re with your friends. That’s like the image you want your friends’ parents to see.

“Finsta is way different. You only have like 100 followers (if that) and you post just random stuff everyday that doesn’t have to be edited or sent to all your friends to reassure that it’s acceptable to post like on your real Instagram. Anything is acceptable to post on Finsta,” Donya explained.

Katie Harrington (’17) agreed with Donya and shared why she personally created a finsta.

“I have a lot of funny pictures that I feel like I can’t post on my real Instagram but I feel like need to be shared with my close friends.”

So why is it that people feel the need to portray themselves one way on the real Instagram but not on their Finsta?

“Society tells us that we can’t really be ourselves for everyone else to see, so our finsta is there for your close friends to know who you really are,” Michael Castaneda (’17) shared.

“On your real Instagram, you pretty much let anyone follow you and anyone can see it so you try to make yourself look good to random people that you might not even normally talk to and your fake Instagram is highly monitored and very exclusive,” Mariel added. “Only a certain number of people can see it and they’re only your close friends so you’re totally fine with looking weird in front of them but not in front of random people,” she explained.

Megan Walaitis (’17) thinks Finsta is gaining popularity in this generation because it is a more creative way to use Instagram.

“Finsta is way more fun than regular Instagram! I can post funny stuff and just be myself,” Megan commented.

Katie shares what kind of things she posts on her Finsta for her followers.

“Embarrassing selfies, embarrassing pictures of my other friends, pictures of my dog, long stories that I would not want all my followers on my real Instagram to know about,” she shared.

“A lot of ugly or funny pictures of myself and long captions and life updates,” Alex added.

Mariel shares that her favorite part of Finsta is sharing stories and reading other people’s stories.

“I like following other finstas as well because it shows me that everyone is not so perfect after all. My favorite part of my own personal Finsta is sharing stories. Whenever something crazy or funny happens to me I can just post it on Finsta!” she shared.

“My favorite part of Finsta is really just being able to post anything and only my closest friends are going to see it. It’s kind of like a big group chat honestly,” Donya agreed.

Michael recommends others make a Finsta because it is a great way to express yourself in a way you can’t on your regular Instagram.

“I would advise others to make a Finsta but make sure to keep your follower count more on the low side because it should only be for your closest friends.”

Katie also recommends making a Finsta as a fun and creative way to share your personality.

“I would totally recommend it because it’s a great way to get your emotions out without making yourself really public.”

Finsta is a fun and different kind of social media because the purpose of it is not to portray yourself in any way or make yourself look good for the public. It is a way for this generation to be themselves and not worry so much about what they are “supposed” to post and what they’re not supposed to post.