TOGETHER WITH

It’s Friday and we’re wishing a fond farewell to Messenger’s standalone website (now that we’ve been reminded it still exists).

PESTER POWER

The YouTube effect: YouTube isn’t just the most popular entertainment destination among Gen A—it’s also the most important platform for brands hoping to reach that audience. According to data shared by Precisify last year, YouTube generates the highest ad recall rate on its long-form videos, while Shorts ads drive more purchases among teens than TikTok ads do.

The latest report from Precisify—which was known as Precise TV before a January 2026 rebrand—shows just how much purchase intent YouTube generates among Gen A.

The report: Precisify offers legally-compliant targeting on kids’ videos via its proprietary technology. By combing through the resulting data, the ad tech provider was able to compile a fresh batch of insights related to Gen Alpha’s consumption habits. Here are the highlights:

When combined, those data points paint a picture of what Precisify calls YouTube’s “pester power.” The impact of that power is impressive: across all ages, Google’s video hub is the vehicle that drives the most purchase requests.

For over a decade, social media felt unpredictable. Brilliant content flopped. Guaranteed campaigns bombed. The whole exercise felt like gambling.

That kind of unpredictability doesn’t belong in 2026. 

In its latest report, industry-leading agency Viral Nation breaks down the science of social signals to prove a simple fact: social media was never chaotic. It was just missing proper infrastructure.

So, what are social signals?

Signals surface the behavioral patterns that explain why outcomes happened, and predict what comes next. In social marketing, there are four primary signal categories: creator, content, audience, and cultural. 

How can brands and marketers harness those social signals to fuel growth?

In Engineering the Social Era, Viral Nation outlines three simple steps you can take right now:

1. Build a monthly signal review meeting into planning cycles 

2. Test creative concepts against signal patterns before production

3. Reframe ROI conversations around contribution

Read Viral Nation’s full report for free to learn more:

HEADLINES IN BRIEF 📰

POD PEOPLE

The music biz: In the last three years, TikTok has hosted two live music performances headlined by A-listers like Cardi B and Demi Lovato. The first of those shows, subtitled In The Mix, took place in 2023, while Live Fest 2026 wrapped up earlier this month.

Those productions had a lot in common, including appearances by both pop icons and rising digital-native stars—but TikTok’s own priorities shifted considerably in the time between the two events. When In The Mix hit Arizona three years ago, for example, TikTok was preparing to launch its own Spotify rival, TikTok Music.

That hub never made it to the United States, and—as of 2026—TikTok seems content to partner with other music services rather than launching one of its own. But that doesn’t mean the platform is done leveraging its status as a music industry tastemaker.

The podcast: That’s where TikTok’s new In The Mix podcast comes in. With so many distributors vying for exclusive rights to major video podcasts, building a competitive library can be arduous and expensive. Thanks to its foothold in the music industry, however, TikTok has been able to craft a show that will bring some star power into its nascent podcast library.

In The Mix is hosted by TikToker Jack Coyne, who rose to fame as the host of music trivia account Trackstar. The show’s first episode—which debuted around the same time as TikTok’s Mariah Carey holiday special—featured Lovato as its inaugural guest star. Coyne has since dropped episode two, which includes an appearance from rising country star Megan Moroney.

If TikTok wants to become a serious force in the podcast world, it will have to add some more genres to its “mix” moving forward. At the very least, however, the app has figured out a smart way to put its tastemaker status to use.

PLATFORM POTPOURRI

The study: Animal-focused content is one of YouTube’s largest categories, but do those videos actually compel viewers to protect threatened species?

A group of researchers tackled that question in a recent study published in Nature. By examining wildlife videos on YouTube, the authors of the paper found that the platform is an effective sounding board for conservation efforts—but not necessarily an effective tool for actually inspiring action.

The researchers noted that wildlife videos (a category that includes pet content) account for about 6.4% of YouTube’s library. Their study examined 1,751 of those videos, and found that 32% of the 25,000 related comments expressed appreciation for wildlife. Only 2% included explicit calls for action.

A breakdown of video topics brought more bad news for wildlife lovers. Within the study’s sample, hunting videos were nearly 2x as common as conservation videos, which made up just 9% of the total count.

The context: Those stats are somewhat surprising, especially given that YouTube stars like MrBeast and Mark Rober have raised tens of millions of dollars for conservation. YouTube’s audience also seems well-suited for environmental activism, since Gen Z consumers consistently rate sustainability as one of the issues that is most important to them.

So, how can conservationists convince viewers to take action? For one, they might consider taking cues from the political sphere. Politicians are now using social media platforms and creator collabs to turn out voters. As creators become more entrenched in the political world, influencer marketing partnerships could become a key promotional tool for environmentalists as well.

There’s also work to be done by platforms themselves. Continuing to clean up misinformation (and maybe even spurning big oil campaigns) are simple steps hubs like YouTube can take to become more effective conduits for conservation.

WATCH THIS

The trailer: Between CoComelon and Roblox, Gen A spends a lot of time glued to screens. If the trailer for Toy Story 5 is any indication, parents and legislators aren’t the only ones concerned about that trend. Action figures are beginning to fret, too.

The antagonist of the film is Lilypad, a kid-friendly, off-brand iPad that schemes to steal little Bonnie’s attention away from her favorite old-school toys. Whether or not Woody and co. can stave off a tech invasion remains to be seen—but in 2026, that challenge certainly seems like a tall order.

Was this email forwarded to you? Subscribe here.​

Want to introduce your brand to Tubefilter’s audience? Sponsor the newsletter.

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