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Cut Out Spam and Trolls With Close Friends on Instagram Live. Here's How

The new live-streaming setting makes it easier to connect with your besties.

Headshot of Katelyn Chedraoui
Headshot of Katelyn Chedraoui
Katelyn Chedraoui Writer I
Katelyn is a writer with CNET covering artificial intelligence, including chatbots, image and video generators. Her work explores how new AI technology is infiltrating our lives, shaping the content we consume on social media and affecting the people behind the screens. She graduated from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill with a degree in media and journalism. You can reach her at kchedraoui@cnet.com.
Expertise artificial intelligence, AI image generators, social media platforms
Katelyn Chedraoui
2 min read
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Instagram wants to help you trade in Instagram Live spammers and trolls for real connections. The platform just announced a new update to its live streaming feature that will let you choose to broadcast only to your Close Friends -- a private, small group of users you can curate. 

You can ensure only your best friends or closest family can see your livestream by easily adjusting your audience settings. You can also add up to three additional co-hosts from your Close Friends list.

Instagram's Close Friends feature was initially launched in 2018 as a private way to share Stories. This newest update expands on its original purpose to help you connect directly with those closest in your social circles, though being able to block out trolls in advance is a nice bonus. Recently, some social media users have been seeking out smaller spaces online to better connect with their communities, like Discord servers. Close Friends on Instagram Live is a new way for users to connect with those smaller groups without leaving the platform. 

In addition to Close Friends live streaming, Instagram also unveiled three new, smaller features. You can now add music to carousels with videos in them (instead of just photo carousels) and use your Notes to temporarily replace your profile picture with a short video. And if you use Notes to wish someone a happy birthday -- you can tag them or just type out the message -- you'll see a new confetti animation. Instagram has been expanding its Stories and Reels features recently, including new stickers like Frames and Reveals which can help you create more interactive content.

Read More: Meta AI Just Slid Into Your DMs: What to Know

three screenshots showing how the Close Friends on Live will appear on Instagram
Meta

How to do an IG Live with your Close Friends list

Starting an IG Live with your close friends is similar to starting a regular one. Here's how.

1. Open Instagram and tap the plus button from the bottom menu.
2. Select Live.
3. Select Close Friends from the top Share With menu or select Close Friends from the pop-up half-page.
4. Edit your Close Friends list if needed and add other Live settings like a title or co-host.
5. Tap Done to go live.

You can't add people to the live stream once you've begun streaming, so make sure your Close Friends list is updated before you start, including your co-hosts. Once you're live, the people on your list will receive a notification inviting them to the stream. Buttons and icons on the video stream will be in Close Friends' recognizable shade of green rather than Instagram's normal purple/pink hue. Live stream viewers won't be able to share the live stream, but co-hosts can.

For more, check out what we know about Instagram's unskippable ads and how to mute specific words from your Threads feed.