'To BeReal or not to BeReal': Students discuss the trendy social media app – The Rice Thresher

Illustrated by Ndidi Nwosu By Jacob Pellegrino     2/22/22 11:37pm A new app has been trending on campus, promising authenticity and a new way to connect with friends and family. While Instagram revolves around photos that people can meticulously curate, BeReal is an image-based social media platform that picks a random time every day when users have to post – a condition that is supposed to encourage more natural photos. A daily upload is necessary for a user to see other people’s posts and to interact on the app; users are forced to actively participate rather than passively scroll. Paige Russell, a Will Rice College junior, said she downloaded the app in November after hearing about it from her cousin and soon began to talk to other Will Ricers about it. “It lets you keep up with people in the way that Snapchat does, but also Snapchat’s lame,” Russell said. “It’s fun to see what mundane tasks other people are doing throughout the day.” Hanszen College sophomore Mimi Filkin is another avid user of BeReal. Filkin said she enjoys being able to connect with all her friends at the same time and especially loves seeing what her family members who…
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