Meta under fire for Instagram auto-refollow issue with accounts linked to Trump administration

Social media users, including celebrities like Demi Lovato and Gracie Abrams, are expressing frustration after experiencing issues unfollowing official Instagram accounts linked to the new US administration.

The accounts for President Donald Trump, Vice President JD Vance, and First Lady Melania Trump reportedly auto-refollow users despite repeated attempts to unfollow.  

Gracie Abrams, an American singer, shared her frustration on Instagram, stating she had to block the "@vp" and "@potus" accounts to ensure she stayed unfollowed. "Had to block them to make sure I am nowhere near that," she posted. Similarly, Demi Lovato shared that she unfollowed the president’s account twice in one day.  

The issue raised concerns among users, adding to growing skepticism about Meta’s platform policies. Questions were also raised about the temporary blocking of the hashtag #Democrat on Instagram, which some saw as politically motivated.  

Meta addressed the backlash, explaining that a technical issue had caused delays in processing follow and unfollow requests during the transition of official accounts to the new administration. Meta spokesperson Andy Stone clarified, "This is the same procedure we followed during the last presidential transition. People were not made to automatically follow any of the official accounts."

Stone also explained that the temporary restriction on hashtags was unrelated to political bias and was part of a broader issue with the hashtag search feature.  

However, these explanations have done little to quell criticism. Meta has faced increased scrutiny over recent policy shifts, including the dissolution of diversity programs, changes to content moderation policies, and the appointment of conservative figures to leadership roles.