I live in a “developing” country where most local businesses don’t have the funds to maintain a dedicated website, so they have their online presence through Instagram or Facebook and offer ordering via WhatsApp.

I don’t love how Meta’s sites are baked into our informal infrastructure here, but it’s the way of things. My refusal to participate is not going to change the system; it’s just going to affect my ability to find information.

I use Instagram for checking business hours and looking at menus. (I’m not even connected with my actual friends who use it.) I don’t think the content I seek out is bad for my humanity, but I also understand that my feed looks very different from most.

It’s possible to build a more affirming experience for yourself, but you’ll still be shown clickbait trash because the algorithm seeks to drive engagement.