Instagram, the visual social media app, is used by journalists to build community interaction and conversation with readers. The simple-icon interface of version 9.7 makes it easy to tell what each section of the app does, from friend notifications to searching popular accounts. While I don’t use Instagram for journalism, I know many reporters who do, posting the day’s breaking news as it happens in a format that many of their viewers are already using. — Chris McCrory
Instagram is immediate and effective. Instagram users can post and caption as many pictures or videos as they please. The app also equips users with filters and editing tools for their post. Instagram allows users to follow each other as well as explore other popular posts. From a journalist’s perspective, Instagram is an effective way to update viewers on stories you are covering. For example, you can post a clip from an interview telling viewers to tune in for the whole story later that night. You could also post a picture of the scene of a crash that you are covering as soon as you get there, which would be most immediate. —Alexis Berdine