"I first noticed Instagram-generated headlines thanks to a Bluesky post from the author Jeff VanderMeer. Last week, VanderMeer posted a video to Instagram of a bunny eating a banana. VanderMeer didn't include a caption or comment with the post, but noticed that it appeared in Google Search results with the following headline: "Meet the Bunny Who Loves Eating Bananas, A Nutritious Snack For Your Pet.""
"I've confirmed that Instagram is generating headlines in a similar style for other users without their knowledge. One cosplayer who wished to remain anonymous posted a video of herself showing off costumes in various locations. The same post appeared on Google with a headline about discovering real-life locations to do cosplaying in Seattle. This Instagram mentioned the city in a hashtag but did not write anything resembling that headline."
""I hate it," VanderMeer told me in an email. "If I post content, I want to be the one contextualizing it, not some third party. It's especially bad because they're using the most click-bait style of headline generation, which is antithetical to how I try to be on social-which is absolutely NOT calculated, but organic, humorous, and sincere. Then you add in that this is likely an"
Instagram is generating headlines for users' posts without their knowledge, and those headlines are appearing in Google Search results. Multiple examples show posts with no user captions appearing with clickbait-style headlines claiming context not supplied by the poster. Google said it is not generating the headlines and is pulling the text directly from Instagram; Meta acknowledged a request for comment but did not respond. Creators expressed frustration at loss of contextual control and at sensationalized framing. The practice raises concerns about automated content labeling, search-ranking manipulation, user consent, attribution, and potential impacts on creators' reputations and intent.
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