Instagram Newsroom

A new mobile app feature allows users to access diverse and trustworthy news content with a focus on credibility and transparency, integrated into their social networking experience.

Project Overview

As a UX researcher exploring the evolving landscape of news consumption on social media, I developed a conceptual design project focused on addressing critical challenges in digital information verification. Using Instagram as a reference platform, I investigated how a news verification feature could help users more confidently navigate and validate online news sources.

Research Mission: Over two months (October-November 2023), I conducted an independent research study to design a hypothetical news verification feature. My goal was to understand user needs around news credibility and develop a user-centered design solution that could potentially improve how people interact with news on social media platforms.

Research Methods:

  • Conducted comprehensive user interviews with diverse participants aged 20-45

  • Performed usability testing using the System Usability Scale (SUS)

  • Developed iterative prototypes to test and refine the news verification concept

  • Used Instagram's interface as a design reference point to ensure familiar user experience

Key Discoveries:

  1. Users consistently expressed anxiety about news credibility on social media

  2. Participants wanted transparent, easily understood verification mechanisms

  3. Most users judge news credibility through multiple verification touchpoints

Design Solution: The resulting conceptual feature would allow users to:

  • See an authenticity verification score for each news article

  • Cross-reference news with multiple aggregators

  • Verify the credibility of source accounts

  • Filter news by authenticity level

Quantitative Insights:

  • Average Usability Score: 76.9/100 (indicating strong potential)

  • User preference for news with verification scores above 90%

Broader Significance: This project demonstrates how thoughtful UX design can address critical challenges in digital information consumption. By developing a user-centered approach to news verification, the study provides insights into potential solutions for improving news credibility on social media platforms.

The design represents a conceptual exploration of how we might empower users to make more informed decisions about the news they consume, using Instagram's interface as a reference point for potential implementation.

Responsibilities:

  • Conduct User Research

  • Prototype, wireframing and user testing

  • UX Analysis and facilitating design thinking process

Tools:

  • Figma

  • Adobe Illustrator

  • Adobe Express

Timeline:

October - November, 2023

Motivation


         Instagram is a popular social media platform that allows users to share photos and videos. The platform has been growing in popularity, with over 1 billion monthly active users as of June 2018. While Instagram is mostly used for sharing personal photos and videos, it is increasingly being used for sharing news and information. In fact, a study found that one in three people in the United States get their news from social media, and that Instagram is the second most popular social media platform for news, after Facebook. Please see this literature review for sourced information.

Given the growing popularity of Instagram as a news platform, I propose to conduct a study on how using Instagram affects the way people share information.

Specifically, I will be looking at how using Instagram affects the way people:

  • Share news and information with others

  • Search for and find news and information

  • Evaluate the reliability of news and information

This study will be conducted through a survey of Instagram users. I will be asking questions about how often they use Instagram to share or search for news and information, what types of news and information they share or search for, and how they evaluate the reliability of the news and information they find on Instagram. The results of this study will help us to understand how using Instagram is impacting the way people share and find information. This information can then be used to improve the way news and information is shared on social media platforms like Instagram.

Problem Statement

Instagram, currently centered around visual content and personal interactions, does not offer a feature for accessing credible news. This limitation creates a significant gap in the user experience, as individuals who turn to Instagram not only for social engagement but also for comprehensive digital experiences find themselves needing to switch between apps to stay informed about current events. The absence of a news access feature disrupts the seamless flow of information and engagement users seek.

As the digital landscape evolves, users increasingly expect social media platforms to provide more than just creative expression and personal connections—they also desire reliable and easily accessible news. Instagram has an opportunity to address this need by integrating a feature that delivers credible news content within the platform. Such an integration would enhance user engagement, keep users informed, and allow Instagram to offer a more comprehensive and valuable experience. However, this integration must be handled carefully to ensure that it complements the app's core focus on visual and social content, while also addressing challenges related to news authenticity and user experience.

Key Research Questions

1.    What motivates people to use Instagram for sharing news and information?

2.    How does using Instagram affect the way people search for and find news and information?

3.    What types of news and information do people share on Instagram?

4.    How reliable do people perceive the news and information shared on Instagram to be?

Project Goals

This case study is centered around the strategic implementation of a news access option in the Instagram mobile app.

Key goals include:

  • Seamless integration of credible news sources into Instagram's mobile app.

  • Enhance user access to reliable news content.

  • Increase user awareness of news sources to promote transparency.

  • Foster a well-informed and engaged user community through strategic design and research.

Research Methodology

User Interviews

Field Studies

Building User Personas

Interviews:

Goals and Expected Outcomes

The primary goals of this research are to understand Instagram users' behaviors and attitudes towards news consumption on the platform, and to evaluate their needs and concerns related to integrating a news verification feature. By gathering insights from a diverse group of participants, we aim to identify key factors that influence how users engage with news on Instagram and how a credibility verification feature could impact their experience.

Goals:

  1. Assess Current News Consumption Patterns:

    • Determine how frequently users encounter and engage with news articles on Instagram.

    • Identify the current methods users employ to assess the credibility of news content.

  2. Evaluate Perceptions of Instagram as a News Platform:

    • Gauge users' opinions on Instagram’s reliability as a source of news.

    • Understand users’ concerns about the authenticity of news shared on the platform.

  3. Explore Reactions to a News Verification Feature:

    • Investigate whether a feature displaying a verification score for news articles would influence users' trust and engagement with news content.

    • Determine the importance users place on the verification of news articles and the factors that contribute to their trust in news sources.

  4. Identify Essential Elements for Effective News Verification:

    • Discover what information users need to feel confident in the credibility of news verification scores.

    • Uncover user preferences for features that could enhance their trust and satisfaction with news content on Instagram.

Expected Outcomes:

  1. Informed User Needs:

    • Detailed insights into how often users encounter news, their decision-making processes regarding credibility, and their concerns about news reliability on Instagram.

  2. User Preferences for News Verification:

    • Clear understanding of how a verification feature could impact users' consumption and sharing of news, including the factors that contribute to trust in news sources.

Participants were a diverse group of Instagram users aged 20-45, including:

  • College students

  • Professionals in marketing, journalism, and tech

  • Social media influencers

  • Casual users of social platforms

The group was selected to represent a broad range of user behaviors and attitudes towards news consumption and sharing on Instagram.

General Questions:

  • How often do you encounter news articles on Instagram?

  • How do you usually decide if a news article is credible?

  • Do you think Instagram is a reliable platform for news?

  • What are your concerns, if any, when reading or sharing news on social media?

Specific Questions Related to the Feature:

  • Would a feature that displays a verification score for news articles impact how you consume or share news on Instagram?

  • How important is it to you that a news article’s credibility is verified?

  • What factors would help you trust a news source more?

  • What information would you need to feel confident in the verification score?

Interview/Field Setting:

Interviews were conducted remotely over Zoom and in-person at a local coffee shop. The casual and familiar setting allowed participants to feel comfortable while using their personal devices, mimicking their typical Instagram browsing environment. Each session lasted around 30-45 minutes, with a mix of open-ended questions and discussions on user behavior and news consumption patterns.

This preliminary step helped gather insights on user attitudes toward news verification, establishing a foundation for the usability studies.

Personas

LoFi Prototype Iterations

Usability Test Insights

SUS Scores Overview

  • Average SUS Score: 76.9

  • Range: 60 – 92

Key Feedback Themes:

  1. Discoverability: Several users had trouble finding the verification score. The score needs to be more prominent or better integrated into the user interface.

  2. Trust in the Verification System: Users consistently expressed doubts about how the score was calculated, indicating a need for greater transparency about the criteria behind the verification process.

  3. Perceived Value: While the concept is generally appreciated, some users questioned its relevance or usefulness for them, indicating that not all users may prioritize news verification on social media.

Conclusions:

  • Mixed Usability Feedback: With an average SUS score of 76.9, the feature shows generally good usability but reveals areas for improvement. Many users found it easy to use once located, but discoverability was a frequent issue.

  • Transparency Needed: Users were consistently unsure about how the verification score was determined, pointing to a need for clearer explanations or links to more detailed information.

  • Consider User Priorities: Some participants questioned the relevance of the feature for their daily use of Instagram. This suggests a need to assess the target audience and potentially tailor the feature for users who prioritize news credibility.

  • Next Steps: Improve visibility and discoverability of the feature within the app. Provide more context or information on how verification scores are calculated, perhaps with an explainer or link to details, and consider whether the feature should be emphasized for specific user groups.

Lofi Iterations Continued

Problem Statement

The current usability study indicates that while the verification feature has a generally good usability score (average SUS score of 76.9), significant issues persist regarding its discoverability and user trust. Users struggle to locate the verification score, and those who do often express uncertainty about its credibility due to a lack of transparency in how the score is calculated. Additionally, some users question the relevance of the feature, highlighting a disconnect between the feature’s perceived value and user priorities. These findings underscore the necessity for targeted improvements in the user interface, enhanced educational resources about the verification process, and a tailored approach to meet the needs of diverse user groups.

Goals:

  1. Enhance Discoverability: Improve the visibility of the verification score within the user interface to ensure users can easily locate it without confusion.

  2. Increase Transparency: Provide clearer information on how the verification score is calculated, fostering user trust in the system and its relevance.

  3. Assess User Priorities: Understand the specific needs and priorities of different user segments regarding news verification on social media, enabling more tailored experiences.

Next Steps:

  1. Enhance Discoverability: Improve the visibility of the verification score within the app’s interface to ensure that users can easily locate it.

  2. Increase Transparency: Incorporate clearer explanations on how the verification score is determined, either through on-screen text, tooltips, or a dedicated information page.

  3. Target User Segmentation: Consider whether the feature should be tailored more explicitly for users who prioritize news credibility, possibly adjusting its prominence or presentation based on different user groups.

HiFi Iteration

News Verification:

In this HiFi iteration, users are now able to verify the authenticity rubric by viewing a snapshot of what major news aggregators have shared and verified the article posted to the user’s news feed. In addition, users will now be able to view the specific accounts associated with sourcing the information and whether they be verified, primary, secondary, or tertiary.

This exemplifies increased transparency and discoverability in the feature that the user can leverage for verification of authenticity.

Landing Page Iteration:

In this iteration of the Newsroom, users will be able to select the news icon in the upper right to view news related content and filter down by date range it was posted as well as it’s authenticity score. Users in previous interviews made key points to mention that their trust in the authenticity of the article diminishes steeply once the verification score reaches a range of 70-90%. This informed my decision to allow users to filter down by an authenticity score above 90%, between 70-90% and any lower than that if they choose.