What Doesn't Make the Highlights

Stories was my last favourite feature. Even if it was copied from Snapchat, I liked the ephemeral nature of letting people into your life with a 24-hour countdown. But then Highlights came and just made everyone create portfolios on social media. The experience of being somewhere became, also, the production of content about being somewhere. The view from the hostel roof got photographed before you sat down to enjoy it. The meal got documented before you could have your first bite. I am not saying people are especially vain, most people I know aren’t, but the design of what the platform intended made the capture feel like the point more than the real moment.