Impact of Social Media

467 people turned their iPhones into dumb phones for 2 weeks. Calls and texts only. The results were closer to "new medication" than "digital detox." Here's what the researchers actually did. They blocked all mobile internet on participants' phones for 14 days. The only remaining things were calls, texts, and desktop internet. Then they measured well-being, mental health, and sustained attention three times across the month. Average screen time dropped from ~314 minutes per day to ~161. Roughly two and a half hours of life returned to people, every day. After the block lifted, screen time rebounded. But it stayed below baseline. Two weeks of enforced reduction recalibrated what "normal" felt like. The outcomes were striking: → Well-being up (Cohen’s d ≈ 0.45) → Mental health up (d ≈ 0.56) → Sustained attention up (d ≈ 0.23) In psychology, these are big effect sizes. The mental health improvement was larger than the average effect of antidepressants in meta-analyses, and similar to the effect of cognitive behavioral therapy. Attention gains were roughly equivalent to reversing 10 years of age-related cognitive decline. From two weeks without Instagram. Let that one sit for a second. 91% of participants improved on at least one outcome. → 73% improved well-being → 70% improved mental health → 59% improved sustained attention This wasn't a lucky subset. It was almost everyone. Why did it work? More time in the offline world: walking, exercising, being outside, talking to humans in person. Less media. More sleep. Better self-control. By the way, more sleep increases feelings of aliveness across the board. One important nuance. Only about 25% of participants kept the block for 10+ of the 14 days. The average effects held anyway. Meaning: even partial reduction moves the needle. You don't have to be perfect to benefit. Who gained the most? → People with high FOMO → biggest well-being and mental health gains. → People with more ADHD symptoms → biggest gains in self-reported attention. If the phone feels like it's running your nervous system, you're likely to benefit most from unplugging from it. A 14-day protocol for anyone who wants to try it: → Block mobile internet (keep calls and texts) → Batch desktop use into 1-3 windows a day → Pre-plan what fills the space: walk, gym, friend, book → Keep a one-line mood and energy log If a full block feels unrealistic, time windows, app blockers, and batched notifications still help. Two weeks. The world doesn't end. What comes back is focus, sleep, calm, and time. That's a better ROI than most things you'll try this year. SOURCES: Castelo, N., Kushlev, K., Ward, A. F., Esterman, M., & Reiner, P. B. (2025). Blocking mobile internet on smartphones improves sustained attention, mental health, and subjective well-being. PNAS Nexus, 4(2), pgaf017.

Many discussions about democracy focus on misinformation. But another challenge may be equally important: distorted perceptions of social reality. Social media often functions like a funhouse mirror, amplifying the most extreme voices who dominate online discourse. As a result, people come to falsely believe those voices represent society and public opinion far more than they actually do. People often describe social media as a town hall or a technology that fosters democratic participation. But our data suggests the opposite pattern in terms of how people actually use it. For instance, authoritarian tendencies are about 3X as likely to predict whether people share their political opinion on social media (compared to pro-democratic values). I presented this research today at a special panel on threats to democracy at the Association for Psychological Science conference in Barcelona. I am convinced that these perception distortions is crucial for understanding democratic discourse in the age of AI and social media. You can read our paper on the funhouse mirror here: https://lnkd.in/e_aCGbg4

It is popularly believed that social media is a net negative for young people. Outsized and unevidenced claims by a handful of pundits are driving the conversation. Solid data and careful analysis tell a very different story. The way young people use social media and its integrated into their social lives is complex and often positive. We all want a safer and more healthy overlap between the digital and analogue, we won't get there with polemics and quick fixes. We need good data and evidence-based policies. 🔍 Employed data from the Trondheim Early Secure Study, observing a Norwegian birth cohort at ages 10 to 18 through biennial assessments. Social media engagement was quantified via self-reports on activities such as liking, commenting, and posting. Assessments of social skills and the quantity of time spent with friends offline were based on parental and self-reports, respectively. 💡 Found no predictive relationship between increased social media use across ages 10 to 18 and changes in social skills, countering the argument that social media might impair social skills development during adolescence. 🤝 Detected a positive correlation between social media use and time spent with friends offline, especially between ages 12 to 14, suggesting that social media engagement may encourage more offline social interactions among young individuals. 📈 The study conducted a rigorous longitudinal analysis to explore the evolution of social media use and its impact on social skills and offline friendships over time, providing valuable insights into how these dynamics change during critical developmental periods in adolescence. 🔄 The research did not find support for the theory that social media use hampers the development of social skills. On the contrary, it indicated that social media might actually aid in strengthening offline friendship connections, echoing previous research that online and offline interactions can be mutually beneficial. #digitalwellbeing #adolescentwellbeing #evidencebasedpolicy https://lnkd.in/eN7TvTiS

How TikTok is winning eCommerce ad spend from Meta For years, Meta dominated social ad budgets. But TikTok has been quietly (and quickly) shifting that balance, especially for eCommerce brands. Why TikTok is winning Discovery over intent: TikTok thrives on impulse and product discovery, turning unknown brands into viral hits. Creative-first ads: Success is driven by authentic, short-form video, not polished carousels or static images. Lower costs (for now): CPMs and CPCs are often cheaper than Meta, giving brands more efficient reach. Commerce integrations: TikTok Shop is closing the gap between discovery and purchase inside the app. What this means for eCommerce marketers TikTok is not just for awareness. Done right, it can be a performance channel. Creative testing is non-negotiable. One winning video can outperform dozens of average ads. Brands that adapt to the platform’s culture - raw, entertaining, native content - will see results faster. Meta is still powerful, but TikTok is becoming the growth channel for brands who are willing to test, learn and scale. Question: Are you shifting part of your paid social budget into TikTok yet, or still relying mainly on Meta? #ecommerce #ppc #digitalmarketing

"Disinformation campaigns aimed at undermining electoral integrity are expected to play an ever larger role in elections due to the increased availability of generative artificial intelligence (AI) tools that can produce high-quality synthetic text, audio, images and videos and their potential for targeted personalization. As these campaigns become more sophisticated and manipulative, the foreseeable consequence is further erosion of trust in institutions and heightened disintegration of civic integrity, jeopardizing a host of human rights, including electoral rights and the right to freedom of thought. → These developments are occurring at a time when the companies that create the fabric of digital society should be investing heavily in, but instead are dismantling, the “integrity” or “trust and safety” teams that counter these threats. Policy makers must hold AI companies liable for the harms caused or facilitated by their products that could have been reasonably foreseen. They should act quickly to ban using AI to impersonate real people or organizations, and require the use of watermarking or other provenance tools to allow people to differentiate between AI-generated and authentic content." By David Evan Harris and Aaron Shull of the Centre for International Governance Innovation (CIGI).

The biggest threat to traditional sports may be a totally new asset class, Sports Creators. Good Good Golf, 7 friends who started their YouTube channel 5 years ago just raised $45 million. For context thats more than challenger leagues such as Baller League, Unrivaled basketball & Grand Slam Track who are often seen as potential disruptors to traditional sports. And unlike traditional sports that depend on 3rd party broadcast and ticketing, they monetise directly with fans. - Good Good have already built their own successful merch operation & brand. This product line even sponsors pro PGA players. - They already put on their own events, the Good Good Championship, with a $100k purse. - They have direct brand and sponsorship deals with the likes of Callaway. - And most importantly, they have a direct relationship with the fans. In fact, i'd go as far to say they may have a better understanding of fans that many traditional rights-holders. Because their content HAS to be built with fans at the centre. Further to this, GG are actually playing a role for attracting new people to the game. They've essentially created a modern sports franchise from scratch, but without the overheads. While traditional sports are stuck in rigid structures, these creators move fast and connect directly with fans. This may be the start of an entirely new asset class in sports - one that doesn't need permission from gatekeepers. Just direct relationships with fans who actually care about the content. Yes you can argue that this it totally detached from the elite game. But what investors are betting on is that is will be one of the main home for this new wave of golf attention and commercial success across the next decade - and they may just be right. This is the future sports execs shouldn't sleep on.

ESPN just hired a 14 million-follower creator as their newest talent. 🏈 Katie Feeney, the recent Penn State grad who made waves as the Washington Commanders' first-ever Social Media Correspondent and covering events such as the Super Bowl and Oscars, is joining ESPN as a Sports & Lifestyle Content Creator. She'll contribute to ESPN's social and digital efforts, including a refreshed SportsCenter on Snapchat show, create short-form content for an upgraded ESPN app, and appear across key shows like Sunday NFL Countdown and College GameDay. This is ESPN acknowledging what we've known for a while: Gen Z doesn't consume sports the way previous generations did. They're not sitting through three-hour broadcasts. They're watching highlights on TikTok, following creator commentary on Instagram, and getting their sports news from personalities they trust and not traditional anchors. ESPN's accelerating a playbook that's working. They hired Omar Raja, who created House of Highlights as a full-time digital commentator in 2020. They inked a deal with the Pat McAfee Show in 2023, and launched the ESPN Creator Network, now in its third iteration. And they're not alone in this shift. Look across the sports landscape. This year alone: 🏈 The National Football League (NFL) broadened its creative initiatives by granting creators and players turned podcasters access to its official archives and event field passes 🏀 The National Basketball Association (NBA) expanded its Creator Program re-upping its Creator Correspondent Program ⛳ The PGA TOUR established a Creator Council to have creators collaborate with its media, marketing, and communications teams ⚾ The Major League Baseball (MLB) invested in Jomboy Media to leverage its expertise and build activations across its key events 📺 FOX Sports announced a collaboration with Barstool Sports that brings its personalities to Fox's college and basketball broadcasts Traditional sports media companies and leagues are racing to stay relevant, and creators are their bridge to younger audiences. What also is fascinating is how this creates entirely new career paths, outside of having to climb the traditional journalism ladder to become a sports media personality. If you build an engaged following, demonstrate your unique voice, major networks, organizations and teams may come calling with partnerships opportunities, job offers or even investment dollars. Katie Feeney joining ESPN isn't just a hire. It's traditional media admitting that creators aren't just supplementary talent anymore: they're essential to survival. The smartest media companies aren't fighting this shift. They're embracing it and I love it. 📬 Want more analysis on how traditional media is adapting to the creator economy? Plus weekly platform updates and what they mean for your strategy? Subscribe to my newsletter: https://lnkd.in/eme5sJMq

If LIV Golf goes under, Bryson DeChambeau is going full-time as a content creator. He mused last week on what he wanted in his future. Said it was more YouTube videos, dubbed in different languages to take him global. And then, if that goes well, maybe he’d turn up to a few tournaments here and there. And with that, he flipped the entire sport hierarchy. For years, the dream for pro-golfers was simple. Everything pointed towards touring as the ultimate success. Sponsors rallied around those who made it there. Broadcasters paid through the nose. If you weren’t on tour, you were invisible. But Bryson weighed that up against a channel he owns himself, and turned his back on it. 2.3 million followers on TikTok. 4.5 million on Instagram. 2.7 million on YouTube. A double digit production team to pump out videos often over an hour long. Next to that, the tour looks like rented attention. Golden rule of celebrity: what you own will win. He’s not alone. Tom Brady started a media company. McGregor crafted an entire brand around himself the instant he left the canvas. Naomi Osaka launched Hana Kuma. These athletes used to rely on their leagues. Now they rely on themselves. Eyeballs have always been the currency in sport, but now they’re not looking at the pitch. They’re looking at what’s going on around it. When an athlete in his prime picks YouTube over competing in the sport that made him famous, you know the game has changed.

I’m excited to share a new report produced by the USC Annenberg Norman Lear Center, “Owning the Narrative,” mapping the rise of athlete-owned media. Athletes are no longer just subjects of coverage or commentators on the action on the field — they are creators, distributors and owners of their own stories. This shift represents both an economic transformation and a cultural rebalancing of power in sports media. We (I am a co-PI with Erica L. Rosenthal on the report) identified more than 370 athlete-owned media properties, from the Kelce brothers’ podcast empire to Giannis Antetokounmpo’s biographical films. These ventures are generating billions in value, opening new spaces for authentic voices, and changing how fans connect with sports and culture. For me, one of the most compelling insights we found are the opportunities for innovation, especially in women’s sports. Despite the surge in women’s sports popularity, only 22% of the top athlete-owned podcasts we analyzed featured any women as hosts or guests. This points to significant opportunities, which we have already begun to see in the growth of women’s sports podcasts, many with athletes as hosts and producers in 2025. Check out our report, the first academic study of the genre, and learn how athletes are leveraging the power of storytelling, representation and ownership to reshape the sports media business ecosystem and culture. Read "Owning the Narrative": https://lnkd.in/gsyQvB4X

🚨 The Real Impact of the TikTok Ban - 5 Days to Go Let's cut through the noise. While many on LinkedIn dismiss TikTok as Gen Z's playground, the platform's impact on the US economy is staggering. You may view it as a tool for timewasting and doom scrolling - Oxford University Press even announced "Brain rot" as the word of 2024.... I'm not a constitutional lawyer, but as a marketer here's what we're about to lose: 1️⃣ Creator Economy 💡 Not just dance trends - we're talking about a revolution in content creation. 1M+ American creators have built legitimate businesses through TikTok's game-changing algorithm. Unlike Instagram or YouTube, TikTok's content-first approach, in-app editing tools and immersive viewing experience, means anyone can go viral based on quality, not follower count. That's democratized creativity at scale. 2️⃣ Commercial Impact 📈 The numbers are mind-blowing: $24B contributed to US GDP. 224,000 American jobs. 7M+ small businesses thriving. TikTok has become the most cost-effective marketing tool for entrepreneurs - turning mom-and-pop shops into viral sensations overnight. Those empty "TikTok Made Me Buy It" sections at Target? That's not coincidence, that's impact. 3️⃣ Cultural Transformation 🌟 Forget perfectly curated feeds. TikTok sparked a authenticity revolution in social media. Raw, honest, unfiltered content is winning. It's not just changing how we consume content - it's reshaping how brands connect with customers, how stories are told, and how communities are built. Watch my 60-second breakdown for the full picture 👇 Love it or hate it, this ban affects more than your social scroll. What's your take? #TikTokBan #CreatorEconomy #Marketing #TIkTok