How TikTok Changed Advertising Forever

Mondelez International’s Nutter Butter went viral with a disturbing, surreal crime scene of smeared peanut butter and broken cookies. Language-learning app Duolingo’s green owl twerked for millions of followers and flirted with pop star Dua Lipa. Mars pet food brand Sheba pitted cats against each other in a race to lick gravy. All of these…

6 Top TikTok Alternatives for Creators

As discussions about a U.S. TikTok ban continue, with President-elect Trump reportedly considering an executive order to extend the case, creators are migrating to other platforms like Triller and RedNote. Triller is trying to poach TikTokers with new tools. Chinese-owned RedNote has popped up seemingly overnight. And Snap launched an ad campaign highlighting why creators…

Donald Trump Wanted to Ban TikTok: Now Will He Be the One to Save It?

President-elect Donald Trump, who takes office the day after the law banning TikTok in the U.S. goes into effect, is reportedly mulling an executive order that would stay the ban by 60 days or 90 days to allow time for negotiating a sale of the application by Chinese parent company ByteDance, or some other alternative….

What the #$@! to Do About Your TikTok Shop

If you’ve logged onto TikTok within the past week (haven’t we all?), you’ve probably seen the latest #goodbyetiktok and #savetiktok content as users stateside prepare for the very real possibility that the nationwide ban on the app will go into effect on January 19. As we anxiously await the Supreme Court’s decision on TikTok’s fate,…

Snapchat Lures in Creators in New Ad Campaign Amid TikTok Drama

Snap is reminding creators that its app is a central place to build a community in a new ad campaign. The company’s campaign comes as rival TikTok faces a potential ban in the U.S. this week. The Supreme Court is set to rule on a looming ban that would wipe the app from the U.S….

TikTok’s Ban Is Our Wake-Up Call to Do Better by Gen Alpha

TikTok’s potential removal from U.S. markets by January 19 has marketers and influencers racing to figure out how to reach the app’s lucrative audience elsewhere. With 44% of Gen Alpha using TikTok in 2024, it’s hard to imagine a world where this platform–a gateway of discovery (and brain rot) for millions of tweens–is suddenly gone….

Agencies Prepare to Shift Social Strategies as TikTok Ban Looks Likely

Brands and agencies have been seemingly unruffled about a potential TikTok ban becoming a reality in the U.S.–until now. After the Supreme Court displayed skepticism on Friday while hearing oral arguments in two cases taking aim at the legality of a ban, agencies are now seriously seeking out alternative places for their clients’ media dollars….

Meta to Slash 5% of Workforce in Round of Performance-Based Layoffs

Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg said in a note to employees Wednesday, seen by Bloomberg, that the company plans to cut approximately 5% of its workforce via performance-based terminations. The parent company of Facebook and Instagram reported about 72,000 employees as of the end of last September in its third-quarter earnings call, so the cuts could…

Substack: Who Needs TikTok? We’ve Got Live Video Now, Too

Despite adding support for video in January 2022, Substack is generally perceived as a platform for podcasts and text. The impending ban of TikTok in the U.S. on Jan. 19 may cause that to change. Starting Tuesday, live video was made available to all publishers on Substack, providing a potential alternative for creators monetizing their…

TikTok Is Silent About How Creators Should Prepare for a Potential Ban but Talent Agencies Are Setting up Their Playbooks

The potential TikTok ban might leave casual users frustrated as they look for ways to enjoy funny animal videos or explore the latest book series. However, content creators and their agencies are working to expand their reach beyond the platform, investing in newsletters, podcasts, and establishing their authority in their niche. ADWEEK reached out to…

Meta Becomes the Latest Major Company to Pull Back on DEI Initiatives

Add another company to the growing list of those scaling back or scrapping their diversity, equity, and inclusion efforts, and it’s a big one: Meta. Vice president of people Janelle Gale sent a memo over the company’s Workplace internal communications forum, as first reported by Axios. According to Gale’s post, Meta will no longer have…

A Skeptical Supreme Court Weighs TikTok’s Future in the U.S.

In a case with far-reaching implications for the future of social media, the Supreme Court today reviewed oral arguments on a federal law that could force TikTok to shut down in the U.S. within two weeks unless the app severs ties with its Chinese parent company, ByteDance. The oral arguments lasted nearly three hours. The…

The US Government Has Banned Information Platforms Long Before TikTok. It Didn’t Go Well.

The Justice Department’s effort to bar Americans from access to TikTok–a matter to be argued before the Supreme Court tomorrow–is possibly the most contentious first-amendment case of the social media age. But it’s not a new one. The United States has enacted widespread bans on publications and information sources in the past, for reasons similar…

Advertisers Feel ‘Less Powerful’ as Meta Embraces Right-Wing Influences

Meta might have opted for a content moderation tactic similar to X, but don’t expect brands to boycott Facebook in the same way they did Elon Musk’s platform. Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg announced changes to the company’s content moderation policies this week–specifically ending third-party fact-checking, and lifting restrictions on free speech across Facebook and Instagram….

5 Key Topics From X CEO Linda Yaccarino’s CES Keynote

It’s been a wild ride for Linda Yaccarino since leaving NBCUniversal in June 2023 to become CEO of X, and she discussed where that ride has taken her and where it might be headed during her keynote address at CES in Las Vegas on Tuesday. Here are five key topics she touched on in her…

Meta Scraps Third-Party Fact-Checking For X-like Community Notes. Some Claim It’s Gone ‘Full MAGA’ 

In a move seen by some as an olive branch to President-elect Donald Trump, Meta said Tuesday that it will scrap the third-party fact-checking program that has been in place since 2016 in the U.S. in favor of a Community Notes initiative, resembling that used on X (formerly Twitter). Joel Kaplan–who was promoted to chief…

Influencer Marketing Firm Later Acquires Mavely for $250 Million to Help Marketers Track Sales

Private equity-backed Later said that it plans to acquire influencer marketing firm Mavely in a cash and equity deal valued at $250 million. Later manages social media and influencer campaigns where creators receive commissions for posting sponsored content. Mavely runs a network of 120,000 creators that work with 1,400 brands and retailers like Nike and…

Florida Law Limiting Social Media Access for Younger Teens Takes Effect

The Children’s Online Privacy Protection Act, which took effect in 2000, set the minimum age for social media users in the U.S. at 13. Lawmakers in Florida want teens to wait a bit longer. House Bill 3, which was signed by Gov. Ron DeSantis in March, went into effect at the start of the new…

How US Brands Can Keep Up With the Live Commerce Gold Rush

Live shopping and video commerce are exploding, driven by growing consumer interest and the success of global disruptors like Shein and Temu. These international players dominate their markets with highly engaging, frictionless shopping experiences and have expanded aggressively into the U.S., raising the stakes for domestic brands. This evolution parallels the introduction of TikTok in…

Instagram Will Drive Half of Meta’s Ad Revenue in 2025

In 2015, Instagram contributed only 7% to Meta’s total U.S. revenue, according to Emarketer. Ten year’s later, the app is projected to account for half, according to the research firm’s latest forecast. Instagram is projected to generate $32.03 billion in U.S. advertising revenue next year, a 24.4% increase from 2024, per Emarketer. This rise would…