Naturalist and TV host David Attenborough has claimed the record for shortest time to reach 1 million followers on Instagram, racking up the numbers just hours after joining the social media platform Thursday.
The veteran broadcaster’s first post — a video warning about climate change — was posted at 2 am Pacific Daylight Time, and just over four hours later, his account hit 1 million followers, Guinness World Records said.
Attenborough explained that he was new to the social media platform but was debuting on Instagram to raise awareness of the climate emergency.
“As we all know, the world is in trouble,” he said in the IGTV video, which has had more than 9 million views.
“Continents are on fire, glaciers are melting, coral reefs are dying, fish are disappearing from our oceans. The list goes on and on.”
“But we know what to do about it,” he said.
Attenborough told viewers to tune in over the next few weeks to learn more about the problems — and solutions — the world faces when it comes to climate change.
“Over the next few weeks I’ll be recording messages to explain what the problems are and how we can deal with them,” he said.
Attenborough’s Instagram account will be run with the help of his colleagues, Jonnie Hughes and Colin Butfield, the pair wote in a message accompanying the 94-year-old’s first video.
“Social media isn’t David’s usual habitat,” they said.
“David Attenborough has spent a lifetime travelling, exploring the wild places of our planet and documenting the living world in all its variety and wonder. He’s also witnessed the damaged caused. Saving our planet is now a communications challenge. We know what to do, we just need the will,” they added.
Attenborough’s speedy acquisition of Instagram followers beats the previous record holder, Jennifer Aniston, who gained 1 million followers in five hours and 16 minutes after joining the Facebook-owned platform in 2019, Guinness World Records said.
