A war, a Stanley cup, and a gender reveal walk into a bar

These things have nothing in common except for making me wonder: What's keeping me on Instagram?

Let’s run a little experiment.

I will open the Instagram app on my phone. Scroll through the first ten posts in my feed, then list their subject matter sequentially.

. . .

Ready? It’s a doozy:

1. Seating chart graphic for the Real Housewives of Salt Lake City reunion taping (Monica has the seat next to Andy)

2. Ad for sweaters (now 30% off, still eye-poppingly expensive)

3. Photo of friend’s kid at a football game

4. A think piece about the war in Gaza.

5. Advice meme about toxic work cultures and severe burnout

6. Ad for bed sheets

7. Influencer shopping haul featuring holiday dresses from Shopbop

8. Carousel of photos exploring Princess Diana’s final year (a promotion for the new season of The Crown)

9. Ad for fancy body soap

10. Quote about aging and missing the younger version of yourself, published by an online women’s magazine

This is…quite a mix.

Maybe it’s the intensity of the news this year; maybe it’s the changing landscape amongst DTC advertising and influencers with it; maybe it’s my own boredom. But last month, I had a striking if not completely obvious revelation: