Instagram is changing its wordmark, internet is blaming Gen Z

Instagram is changing its wordmark after 10 years, adopting a "sharper and more modern" look. But some, who are not happy with this update, are now blaming Gen Z.

In Short

• Instagram is changing its wordmark after 10 years
• Users say Gen Z is to blame
• New wordmark does away with cursive font

Instagram is making one of the biggest changes to its identity in nearly 10 years. The Meta-owned platform has revealed a new wordmark – a text-only logo – which Instagram CEO Adam Mosseri calls a “more modern” look. But not everyone is happy with this change, and some have found a way to blame Gen Z for it.

The new wordmark, which has a simpler font, replaces the older cursive wordmark that was introduced in 2016. Adam Mosseri wrote on Threads, “We updated the Instagram wordmark today, which is more than a decade old and felt dated.”

Among other places, you can spot the wordmark at the top of the Instagram app.

Gen Z can’t read cursive, users say

On X, some users claimed that Gen Z might be the reason for Instagram’s decision to change the wordmark. Why? They say that Gen Z cannot understand cursive text. “If you're curious why Instagram changed their wordmark today, it's because schools stopped teaching cursive ~10 years ago so GenZ can't read it,” one user wrote.

That is, Instagram may have decided to replace its cursive wordmark with a simpler one that would make it easier to recognise for younger users.

To give you some context, while cursive handwriting is still taught in Indian schools, things are a bit different in the US. In 2010, the US Common Core policy standards did not list cursive handwriting as a requirement, while mandating typed skills for schools.

A survey by Docusign found that in the US only 51 per cent of Gen Z could sign their name in cursive, compared to 80 per cent of “boomers.” Though in recent years, many US states have mandated cursive handwriting.

On the same post, some users agreed with this view. “These days cursive is becoming more of a cultural artifact,” one person said. “Funny how something once considered basic literacy can now look almost like a secret code to younger generation.”

In a separate post, another person wrote, “The letters barely being in cursive signifying the division between us all.”

Although some claim that the new Instagram wordmark may create more problems because of how it looks. The wordmark uses different fonts, and some are confusing the “r” with a “z.”

One person posted, “Instagram is now instagzam, a new skin care brand!” Another user wrote, “New Instagram logo. Now it's Instagzam.”

The last time Instagram changed its logo, it shifted away from the 3D camera icon for the app logo, into a more transparent rainbow design that is still there today.

- Ends