Well, this isn’t the way I imagined heading into the 11th anniversary of I Heart Hamilton! But it has been a good reminder that everything is ephemeral, and to not get too attached to things. Don’t put all of your digital eggs in one basket!
My Instagram account (@ihearthamont) has been deactivated, and it doesn’t appear to be coming back.
On Tuesday, December 7, I just published a new blog post (the Holiday Playlist), and made the rounds to share it to Facebook, Twitter, then Instagram. Going to my Instagram account (which I had already looked at just an hour or so before; it was totally fine), I received a notification that suspicious activity was detected, and I was signed out, with no option to log back in. I followed the instructions there, and was told it was then in review, and I may get a response in 24 hours.
The next day (December 8), when trying to log in, I received a notification that my account has been deactivated due to a violation of community guidelines. There was a button to appeal it. I filled out the form, and received an email with more instructions. I completed that, and as of now, nothing has come from that.
I’ve been through many different emotions thinking about this. It really stings, to lose 10 years’ worth of posts, and to lose a connection with 12.6K followers. I have had so much fun for a decade creating I Heart Hamilton through blogging, hosting a community radio show, and sharing content across multiple social media platforms. I’ve worked very hard and devoted so much time to it, but it’s also so much fun. I connected with so many amazing people along the way, and have appreciated sharing in our mutual love for this city. Instagram in particular grew quite a bit, and it has been a source for so much connection. With it gone, important contacts and conversations are lost. It was also my way of keeping track of musicians, events, businesses – it was a place for me to discover Hamilton. I’m also now losing the occasional paid opportunity via a sponsored post, or an exchange type of partnership, which I was always grateful for.
I’ve started a personal Instagram account so I can get back on there and just enjoy the platform: @touristmetaphor. I love the platform and want to keep using it. The way I feel right now, I don’t see myself building up an I Heart Hamilton presence on Instagram, the way it was.
Onward and upward! We keep moving. There are a lot of more important things to focus on, and there is still so much content that I’ve enjoyed making, and continue to!
TikTok (This has been super fun to dive into!)
Mixcloud (All radio episodes get uploaded there, and posted here on the blog, of course!)
If anyone has any insights on Instagram, please feel free to reach out: connect@ihearthamilton.ca. If there is a way to get the account back, I would be very grateful for that. But, going with the flow!
❤️ Kristin
(Cover photo taken by Steph Montani)
