DO INSTAGRAM STORIES SPEAK MORE THAN REAL CONVERSATIONS?
You haven’t heard from a friend in weeks. No texts, no calls, no meetups. But there they are—posting from a concert, sharing a vacation sunrise, uploading a meme that hits a little too close to home. You watch their life unfold in fragments, 15 seconds at a time. You know what they ate, what they wore, where they were last night. So why does it feel like you haven’t spoken in months? In a digital world fueled by immediacy and curated moments, Instagram Stories have become the new small talk. Instead of asking how someone’s doing, we check their story. Instead of sharing openly, we post vaguely. And rather than calling, we respond with a fire emoji and consider it “staying in touch.” But are we really connecting—or just broadcasting? Instagram Stories are quick, visual, and addictive. They offer a kind of emotional shorthand—a cryptic lyric, a blurry skyline, a boomerang of clinking glasses. They hint at how we feel without requiring us to explain. And for many, that’s easier...