Girl Talk

The Best Gossip Spreads In Invisible Ink

An iMessage feature offers the illusion of discretion — and a dramatic flourish.

by Samantha Leach
Emma Chao/Bustle; Getty Images

“Can I be a b*tch for a second?”

For a long time, seeing those words pop up onscreen was the best indicator of good gossip to come. Close seconds included “OK, so…” for the more demure among us, or a simple teacup emoji for the chronically online. But recently, a particular iMessage feature has entered the chat.

Invisible ink — the effect that blurs your messages, making them look like a static-y television unless you’re pressing on it as you read — debuted in 2016 alongside other iMessage features like “gentle,” “slam,” and “loud.” But in the intervening years, it’s the only one that has made a true impact on our digital styles of communication enough to become a meme: On Twitter these days, controversial opinions like “I honestly can’t wait for the Eras Tour to end” are accompanied by the tongue-in-cheek caveat “sent with invisible ink.”

Teenagers are using the effect to hide their texts from their parents, and adults are using it to talk sh*t. “I typically use it when I'm sharing celebrity gossip that I've learned from a colleague or a drunk publicist with loose lips. I've definitely had someone tell me a story about something crazy an actor did on set or a pop star who made an assistant cry at a photo shoot,” says Harrison*, a 29-year-old who works in entertainment. “I don't consider myself a massive gossip but I have to share the story with a handful of my gal pals, and using invisible ink at least gives the illusion that I'm trying to be discreet.”

The second you see invisible ink, you know it’s going to be good.

“I love receiving an invisible ink text,” says Cazzie David, author of No One Asked For This. “It makes gossip, which is already incredibly exciting, even more exciting. It’s like a red curtain that comes up before the show. The second you see invisible ink, you know it’s going to be good.”

While Normal Gossip host Kelsey McKinney — whose upcoming book, You Didn’t Hear This From Me, examines and celebrates the role gossip plays in contemporary culture — personally prefers using voice memos, she also agrees with David. “There is one arena that invisible ink cannot be beat in, and that is the art of the big reveal. Recently someone told me a story via text, with dozens of texts, some of them the length of my phone screen,” she says. “At the end of her story there was a big, sexy reveal. She brilliantly put that reveal behind the invisible ink mechanic, so that it hovered there, the dots of mystery clouding it, until I uncovered it myself. The drama! The intrigue!”

Jenny*, a 27-year-old startup employee, primarily uses the feature to speculate about which of her friends are on Ozempic — and to b*tch about her mother-in-law. “I’m super close with my sister-in-law so we’re always venting. Sometimes, it’s about the backhanded compliments she gives us. Others, it’s literally just about her clothes,” she says. “I’d never want my husband to find out what I really think, or God forbid, his mom. So it’s always invisible ink all the way.”

I’d never want my husband to find out what I really think, or God forbid, his mom. So it’s always invisible ink all the way.

There are plenty of ways to send actually secure messages (like Signal), and platforms that safeguard users from having their messages shared (like Snapchat or Instagram’s vanishing mode). Invisible ink, however, is neither secure nor share-proof. You can still reread the message as many times as you want, and they’re screenshottable. But if someone’s standing over your shoulder, or you’re indicating to a friend that you want the message kept between the two of you, the effect is beneficial. Besides, many say they’re entertained enough by the pageantry to keep using it. “I started using it after a few friends made me laugh using invisible ink in a really cheeky way,” says Harrison. “I realized how fun and useless it was as a text tool, so I started using it to underscore jokes, too.” (Think: receiving a bunch of actually b*tchy comments via normal message, then “I’m holding space for the lyrics of ‘Defying Gravity’” in invisible.)

Still, some maintain that top-tier gossip sessions are only handicapped by the desire for discretion. New York editor Morgan Baila believes the problem isn’t with the technology — it’s with its users. “I'm a firm believer that if you have to use ‘invisible ink’ in a group chat, then those aren’t your real friends,” she explains. “Or your take is so bad that you should reconsider sending it at all.”

Sometimes, the best thing to do is keep your mouth shut — sent with invisible ink.

*Some names have been changed for purposes of anonymity.