Cancel culture and self-censorship on Instagram

This exploratory study seeks to unearth various notions that restrict freedom of speech, such as cancel culture, online hostility, and self-censorship on social media sites, specifically Instagram. It focuses on how Instagram users are self-censoring around social topics discussed on Instagram, due to the prevalence of cancel culture. Through the employment of in-depth interviews, it looks at the way Instagram affordances assists users in resisting self-censorship, through user agency and the creation of safer spaces. It also outlines other reasons users self-censor on the social media site, and the consequent effect on democracy.