Instagram’s recent API changes, cutting off third-party app access, have thrown a wrench into many workflows, including my personal journaling practice. I rely on Day One to archive snippets of my life, often pulling in Instagram photos and captions to provide context. Now, that seamless integration is broken, highlighting a crucial lesson: the importance of owning your content.
For years, we’ve entrusted our memories and creations to platforms that, ultimately, control the rules. This isn’t the first time such a shift has disrupted digital lives. Remember Yahoo! 360, Orkut, Foursquare check-ins, or Live Spaces? These once-vibrant online spaces vanished, taking countless personal stories with them. While some data might be retrievable through convoluted export processes, the experience is never the same.
The Instagram/Day One situation is a microcosm of this larger issue. We pour our time and energy into crafting posts, sharing experiences, and building communities on platforms we don’t own. When these platforms change their policies, our digital legacies are at their mercy.
This reinforces the need for a personal web presence. A dedicated website or blog provides a space where you control the narrative, the design, and the longevity. It’s a digital home you own, not a rented room in someone else’s building. While social media platforms are great for connecting and sharing, they shouldn’t be the sole repository of our digital lives. By investing in our own online spaces, we ensure our stories remain accessible and under our control, regardless of the whims of any social media giant.
