Instagram's cofounder flew all the way to Rome to set up the Pope's account

  • 14 Dec - 20 Dec, 2019
  • Mag The Weekly
  • Mag Files


Most people fly to Rome to see the sights, indulge in the food, and experience the culture. But in 2016, Instagram cofounder Kevin Systrom made the trip for other reasons: to set the Pope up with his very own IG handle (@franciscus). Yep, you read that right. In an interview, Systrom discussed a lot of important things. The best part of the interview was when he recalled personally signing Pope Francis up for an Instagram account. It took some major dedication on Systrom's part. "I went to Vatican City twice. The first time was to present the idea. I explained why, no matter who you are, if you have something to say, Instagram’s the place to do it. [The Pope] said, 'Well, my team will look at this and give me their decision. But they’re not in charge, because everyone has a boss.' He pointed at himself. He said, 'Even I have a boss,' and he pointed up in the sky. I thought that was really funny," Systrom recalled in the interview. And even after the Pope got approval from his team and the man upstairs, there was still more work to be done. "They called back, and they said, 'Can you come back to sign him up?'" Systrom recounts. Since then, it's safe to say Pope Francis has been thriving on the Gram. In three years, he's managed to rack up an impressive 6.3 million followers, almost 800 posts (all of which are very insta-worthy), and two highlights.

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