La divulgación científica en Instagram: usos y estrategias desde la praxis chilena

Both academic research and industry reports show how social networks have penetrated at a fast pace in Latin America. From the challenge of making specialized knowledge accessible to society, this phenomenon is an opportunity to learn how they are being used for scientific journalists working in specialized institutions. This study focuses ontheChileancontext, payingspecialattentiontoInstagram. Duetoits particularitiesand visual characteristics, this social network is replacing other applications such as Twitter and Facebook as a tool for scientific communication. The perception of the journalists working in scientific institutions and centers and their relationship with Instagram is hereby revealed, and its further analysis is developed based on a questionnaire with open and closed questions, which represents a contribution to the study on the journalistic use of social media. According to the results, 70% of those consulted identify Instagram as the most frequently used application for scientific dissemination on social media, due to its dynamismandvisualcapabilitiestodelivermessages. However, althoughthereisa positive assessment of the platform and its importance as a great ally for the dissemination process, there is also a needto focus the messages andapply appropriate graphic criteria for greater effectiveness on posts and more engagement with the audiences.