It's Thursday and after fifteen-odd years, The Social Network is getting a sequel. Will Zuck treat Facebook employees to a screening of this film, too?

Today’s News

PROM SEASON

The Streamer Prom hit 4.5M hours of live Twitch watch time

The event: On June 18, the Streamer Prom proved to be one of the biggest cultural moments in Twitch history. The massive gala soared to a whopping 4.49 million hours of live watch time across all of the Twitch channels that covered it—and that didn’t even include the wave of VODs that hit YouTube and TikTok following the event.

The brain trust behind the Streamer Prom consisted of longtime chart-topper FunnyMike and his management team at Fixated, a one-year-old firm that handled creative direction, production, brand partnerships, and more for the event.

The Streamer Prom was sponsored by Popeyes—which awarded $10,000 to a prom king and queen—and attended by 50 of the biggest creators in the world, including DDG, Sketch, Wendy Ortiz, and members of FaZe Clan and AMP. The interconnected relationships between those stars captivated viewers, with many fixating on Twitch big-shot jasontheween and Sakura, who attended as a couple (and even got their own theme song).

Several attendees broadcast the bash on their respective accounts, which—combined with coverage from a number of other channels—led to some pretty incredible stats:

• DDG’s stream claimed the most total watch hours, topping out at 807,800.
  
  

• FunnyMike set a personal record by reaching 218,121 concurrents on his channel alone.
  
  

• 1,575 unique channels covered the event, which peaked at 562,883 concurrent viewers.
  
  

• According to data provided by Fixated, the Streamer Prom produced a total of 513 years of watch time.

The takeaway: The attention paid to the Streamer Prom extended beyond the creator industry, with the event becoming a top-trending topic on X. That wide reach provides living proof of how thoroughly streaming culture has been accepted into mainstream culture, while the relationships between attending creators demonstrate how close-knit the streaming community has become.

HEADLINES IN BRIEF 📰

• Gushcloud—aka the largest talent representation, content distribution, and creator monetization business in Asia—has acquired Wizdeo‘s multichannel network. (Tubefilter)
  

• YouTube has announced that it will be “increasing the minimum age required to live stream to 16 years old” as of July 22. (YouTube Help)
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• A fitness influencer known as the Liver King was arrested “on a charge of Terroristic Threat” earlier this week after uploading a series of aggressive posts directed at podcaster Joe Rogan. (Gizmodo)
  
  

• Meta has reportedly poached three OpenAI researchers—Lucas Beyer, Alexander Kolesnikov, and Xiaohua Zhai—as it ramps up its mission to develop an AI “superintelligence” team. (TechCrunch)

TALKING POLITICS

YouTube’s exclusion from Australia’s teen social media ban is under fire

The law: Australian legislators are debating YouTube’s status under a law that will restrict access to social media for users younger than eighteen. 

The decree in question was passed in November 2024, but it won’t go into effect until this December—meaning regulators have had over a year to work out critical nuances. The hottest question, at least in terms of press coverage, is whether YouTube should be subjected to the ban alongside major social hubs like TikTok, Snapchat, X, Facebook, and Instagram. So far, the Alphabet-owned video platform has earned an exemption by convincing the Australian government that it has educational uses and is “not a core social media application.”

In response, companies like TikTok have argued that the exception is nothing more than a “sweetheart deal” built on “illogical, anti-competitive and short sighted” logic.

The challenge: At least one Australian power player is listening to those complaints. eSafety Commissioner Julie Inman Grant recently advised lawmakers to make the ban “fair, consistent, and proportional” by including YouTube. She cited the platform’s popularity and its breadth of extremist content (from “misogynistic content to hateful material to violent fighting videos, online challenges, disordered eating” and “suicidal ideation”) as reasons why it should be restricted among young users.

YouTube was quick to hit back at that challenge. The platform’s Public Policy and Government Relations Manager, Rachel Lord, argued that Grant’s position “represents inconsistent and contradictory advice” and “ignores Australian families, teachers, broad community sentiment and the government’s own decision.”

YouTube’s sharp response makes sense. If Australia’s national government can find an effective way to keep teenagers off of social media, it would set a model that other countries would surely follow—one that could have major consequences for platforms looking to maximize their reach among the next generation of viewers.

CAMP TIKTOK

TikTok is inviting viewers to summer camp

The hashtag: According to sources like NerdWallet, the price of summer camp enrollment is rising fast. That’s why TikTok is giving families a more affordable way to keep kids entertained while they’re out of school.

The app has unveiled #TikTokSummerCamp, an initiative that spotlights crafty creators while introducing young viewers to traditional forms of summertime fun. Users who check out the corresponding hashtag will be able to explore hands-on activities that would not be out of place at your local summer camp.

The creators presenting those activities include miniature zen garden maker @brandontheplantguy, stargazer @athomewithshannon, and firefly lantern builder @dadlifejason. Of course, it wouldn’t be summer camp on TikTok without a little slime time, so @alexandra_lourdes is showing viewers how to formulate goo in their own homes.

The context: TikTok isn’t the only company chasing under-18 viewership while school is out. Mark Rober and Toys and Colors have debuted a series of collabs featuring camp-coded activities like foam volcanoes, while Baby Shark owner Pinkfong recently dropped a Shein apparel line and CoComelon announced a partnership with Sanrio’s Hello Kitty brand.

The timing of these initiatives, programs, and merch lines illustrates one simple fact: social media’s youngest users have an immense influence on viewership trends and cultural movements—and companies are eager to capture their attention early on.

WATCH THIS

Anthpo’s latest hit event: A Timothée Chalamet lookalike contest

The motivation: Anthony Potero (aka Anthpo) wanted to prove to himself that he hadn’t just “fallen into” success as a content creator. So, he decided to put his skills to the test by anonymously hosting events in his neighborhood—including a Timothée Chalamet lookalike contest.

The event: As the creator explained in a recent video from Colin & Samir, that contest did a whole lot more than demonstrate his ability to entertain and unite fans. Thousands of people ended up congregating for the event—including Chalamet himself, who dropped in to see what kind of doppelgängers would hit the stage.

At the end of the day, Anthpo’s anonymous lookalike contest inspired dozens of similar events around the world, fulfilling the YouTuber’s dream of “turning the internet into a place for people to hang out in real life.”

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