It’s Monday and TikTok is back in the government’s good graces. For the first time since 2022, the U.S. Department of Justice is giving federal employees the go-ahead to download TikTok on government devices.

GAME ON

The boxing match: As the value of sports broadcast packages continues to rise, TikTok has struck multiple deals that will bring top athletes to its platform. Upcoming broadcasts on the video app include a championship boxing match headlined by Amanda Serrano, a featherweight star with a lifetime record of 49-4-1.

The Puerto Rican world champion was the first fighter signed to Most Valuable Promotions, the boxing organization co-founded by Jake Paul and Nakisa Bidarian. Serrano’s November 2024 battle against Katie Taylor—which was part of the undercard for Paul’s fight against Mike Tyson—was so memorable that Netflix booked a rematch. Fast forward to August 21 of this year, and Serrano will defend her title against Lucrecia Manzur in a match broadcast live on TikTok.

The GamePlan: TikTok’s sports playbook doesn’t stop at high-profile boxing matches. Through a comprehensive product suite called TikTok GamePlan, sports leagues can activate on the titular app and partner with its creators.

The MLB and FIFA have already taken advantage of that opportunity. Now, the NBA and WNBA will harness GamePlan to find new viewers among users searching for basketball content. The leagues’ partnership with TikTok will also give creators access to highlights and events like NBA All-Star Weekend.

In a press release, TikTok revealed that searches for “NBA” and “WNBA” are up 30% and 15%, respectively, since the start of 2026.

The motivation: Other viewer data trends show us that the platforms with the most coveted live sports packages tend to get the most traffic. By bringing in boxing matches and NBA coverage, TikTok aims to get a bigger piece of the streaming pie while feeding its existing marketing strategy.

The platform’s Pulse Premiere ad product is designed to bring brands closer to major events. Now, as part of its deal with the NBA and WNBA, TikTok will offer Pulse Premiere deals tied to the basketball leagues.

BY THE NUMBERS

The report: YouTube’s latest U.S. Impact Report offers up some hefty stats. According to the study, the platform contributed $60 billion to the U.S. national gross domestic product (GDP) and supported the equivalent of 540,000 full time U.S. jobs in 2025 alone.

Those economic numbers are up year-over-year. In the YouTube Impact Report that covered the 2024 calendar year, the platform estimated its U.S. GDP contribution at $55 billion and said that its ecosystem accounted for 490,000 full time equivalent jobs.

The angle: With its latest Impact Report, YouTube is taking a page out of TikTok’s book by positioning its economic and cultural contributions as forces for good. Its 2025 report notes that it has paid out $100 billion to creators, artists, and media companies over the past four years. In all 50 states, at least ten channels that are getting one million monthly views or more.

YouTube’s report also plays up its educational merit. According to research conducted by Oxford Economics (YouTube’s typical partner for its Impact Reports), 73% of viewers said they’ve learned about local history and culture via YouTube, while 94% of teachers who use YouTube claimed to incorporate the platform into their lessons. At home, 78% of parents said YouTube provides quality entertainment and education for their children.

YouTube has good reason to emphasize its economic and educational contributions. The platform is currently appealing a landmark verdict that found it liable for teens’ social media addiction—and while the YouTube Impact Report isn’t exactly a court document, it’s nevertheless a smart way to drum up some positive PR.

WATCH AND LEARN

The report: YouTube has overshadowed Netflix‘s watch hours in the U.S. for years. Now, according to fresh data, it’s beating the streaming service’s global watch hours, too.

Last week, Netflix posted a viewership report on the first half of 2026. And while the streamer said those six months brought it “more than 97B hours on Netflix–our highest view hours to date for a half,” it also downplayed the importance of watch time.

Co-CEO Greg Peters repeated that sentiment during the platform’s earnings call, saying that not all watch hours “are created equal.” He cited Netflix’s lean into live events as evidence, since those broadcasts apparently drive revenue and subscriber signups, but don’t result in a lot of watch hours.

The streaming service also revealed that, moving forward, it will only publish viewership reports once per year (instead of twice-yearly) in order “to keep the focus on our primary financial metrics—revenue and operating profit.”

The context: This isn’t the first time Netflix has sought to obscure audience measurement data from outside observers. It stopped reporting quarterly subscriber gains in 2025, saying the number was “increasingly less accurate in capturing the state of the business.” Instead, it said, it would focus on other “key metrics that we think matter most to the business.”

Netflix’s “primary financial metrics,” however, may not be enough to reassure shareholders. The company came in at $12.86 billion against analysts’ expected $13 billion, with earnings per share at $0.82 versus the expected $0.84. Netflix’s largest segment (U.S. and Canada), also saw year-over-year growth of 10%—an underperformance compared to the last four quarters.

According to Bloomberg Intelligence analyst Geetha Ranganathan, all this points to “some kind of slowdown.” Shareholders seem inclined to agree; following its earnings call, Netflix’s stock dropped nearly 8%.

LISTEN UP 🎙️

The episode: On the latest installment of Creator Upload, Make Believer founder and YouTube vet Ben Relles joined forces with regular host Joshua Cohen for a deep-dive into some fundamental shifts in the creator economy.

At the top of the discussion list was Netflix’s recent spate of creators deals—plus the growing impact of AI filmmaking on digital storytelling. Check out the full episode on Spotify and Apple Podcasts to dig into all the details.

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Today's newsletter is from: Emily Burton, Drew Baldwin, Sam Gutelle, and Josh Cohen.