'My life is clipping': How a mix of mayhem and strategy fueled a top livestreamer's career N3on, 21, mastered livestreaming by stirring up trouble. Now, he's reckoning with the cost of his success.

For my profile of top Kick streamer N3on, I learned how big an industry clipping is now & how it incentivizes manufactured moments. Seeing, it turns out, may not be believing...
www.businessinsider.com/how-top-kick...

Alix Earle and Alex Cooper are feuding, and the internet has a favorite Data from social listening firms break down who's gotten more negative sentiment since the Alix versus Alex public feud started last week.

Who's winning the Alix-Alex online feud? It's not that simple
www.businessinsider.com/alix-earle-a...

Court tosses out X's suit that accused major advertisers of illegally boycotting the Elon Musk-owned platform A US District Court judge dismissed X's case against big advertisers like Mars and Lego, citing lack of jurisdiction and failure to state a claim.

Dismissed: big advertisers prevail in X's suit accusing them of illegal boycott (but he still succeeded in getting their digital safety initiative shut down) www.businessinsider.com/elon-musk-x-...

This startup raised $34 million to make micro dramas starring AI actors — and let fans interact with them StoReel describes how it uses AI and a user-generated platform to make micro dramas at a fraction of the cost paid by established players.

New: I got the details on this micro drama startup that raised $34m to make AI actors you can flirt with. They shared their most popular drama to date - it might surprise you
www.businessinsider.com/pitch-deck-s...

YouTube star Mark Rober got a big boost in product sales after his Netflix deal Netflix co-CEO Ted Sarandos says the streamer's push into podcasting and YouTube-born content is bearing fruit.

@netflix.com says it's not just boosting creators' audience but their product sales, too: www.businessinsider.com/youtuber-mar...

'The Diary of a CEO' star Steven Bartlett is going all in on AI — except on LinkedIn FlightStory execs discussed all the ways Steven Bartlett's company is using AI, and where it's dialing back its use.

@officialsteven.bsky.social gave his company a challenge: try to replace yourselves with AI in 2 months. Here's how it's going: www.businessinsider.com/steven-bartl...

YouTube juggernaut Dude Perfect hired its first content chief as it strives to build a Disney-style flywheel The YouTube troupe hired Defy and Maker Studios vet Kevin Sabbe to help it expand into new content areas and broaden its audience.

NEW from me: YouTube juggernaut @dudeperfect.bsky.social just made its latest hire as it chases a Disney-like expansion www.businessinsider.com/dude-perfect...

A former MrBeast editor is on a mission to make the creator economy better for women Rachel Kisela saw a gender gap among YouTube editors, so she built a site to connect women editors and employers.

The creator economy is still a bit of the Wild West. I talked to a former @mrbeastbr.bsky.social editor about her online community, EditHers, that's part job board, part guild, part therapy group, and part skill incubator:
www.businessinsider.com/former-mrbea...

Leaked deck shows Elon Musk's X is promoting Grok's brand-safety scores after sexualized images backlash A leaked deck shows that Elon Musk's X is touting its brand-safety features. It comes after a controversy about sexualized images.

Irony alert: X's new brand safety tool is — Grok! Details in leaked pitch deck ⤵️
www.businessinsider.com/elon-musk-x-...

Peacock's next growth bet: selling subscriptions for other streamers Peacock has approached specialty streamers about selling subscriptions to complement its reality TV and sports-heavy programming.

Scoop: NBCU's Peacock is going small in its latest quest for growth
www.businessinsider.com/nbcu-peacock...

NBCUniversal is suing Group Black, alleging breach of contract and seeking nearly $36 million Comcast's NBCUniversal filed a breach-of-contract lawsuit against its former partner. Group Black says it disputes the claims.

NEW: Comcast's NBCUniversal is suing Group Black to recover nearly $36m stemming from their former ad sales partnership www.businessinsider.com/nbcuniversal...

MrBeast had billion-dollar dreams for his burger venture. Now he's trying to destroy it. MrBeast Burger is at the center of a bitter legal battle between Jimmy Donaldson and his business partner, Virtual Dining Concepts.

MrBeast could soon have his day in court over the MrBeast Burger fiasco. We dove into the court docs to tell the inside story revealed by court docs of how the social star's biggest bet ever fell apart, and its lessons for the creator economy:
www.businessinsider.com/mrbeast-jimm...

Creator income inequality is rising as top influencers rake in big paydays CreatorIQ data reveals a widening income gap in the creator economy as top influencers account for a growing share of brand spending in 2025.

Creator income inequality is rising, with the top 1% earning 21% of brand spending, per new CreatorIQ data:
www.businessinsider.com/creator-inco...

A Guggenheim heir just raised $50 million to back media and creator startups. Here are 4 areas he's betting on. Guggenheim Brothers Media and Abu Dhabi's EIH formed a fund for media, entertainment, and creator economy investments.

Gulf💰 is flowing into US media & entertainment. I talked to 2 investors, fresh off a $50m raise, about where they're placing their bets:
www.businessinsider.com/guggenheim-f...

Disney-backed DramaBox is seeking new funding as it tries to win the micro drama race in the US DramaBox, a top micro-drama app, is looking to raise fresh funding as the short-video format gains popularity.

Scoop: leading short-drama app is seeking to raise as much as $100m in funding as it aims for US domination www.businessinsider.com/dramabox-see...

Why Warner Bros. Discovery dialed up the heat in its latest rejection of Paramount Warner Bros. Discovery rejects Paramount Skydance's leveraged buyout bid again, citing financial and litigation risk

Warner Bros.'s latest rejection of Paramount's bid was notable for its tough language. What's behind it:
www.businessinsider.com/warner-bros-...

MrBeast's release strategy for Season 2 of 'Beast Games' highlights a key concern creators have with TV Amazon's Prime Video and MrBeast debut 'Beast Games' Season 2, offering copyright-free reactions to maximize promotion.

@MrBeast's release strategy for "Beast Games" S2 shows how the lines between TV and YouTube are blurring
www.businessinsider.com/beast-games-...

TikTok is jumping into micro dramas, the surging bite-sized soaps that have caught Hollywood's eye TikTok has added a Minis section that enables users to watch micro dramas in its app, as it looks to boost engagement and e-commerce revenue.

TikTok just made a big move to make the platform the one-stop shop for microdramas, the current Hollywood obsession. Could YouTube and Meta be far behind?
www.businessinsider.com/tiktok-jumps...

Netflix's Christmas NFL games are part of a trend. This chart shows how much streamers are spending on sports. Amazon, YouTube TV, and Netflix dominate US sports streaming, accounting for 65% of the $6.5 billion spent by streamers on sports rights.

www.businessinsider.com/sports-strea...

Big tech is eating the sports media world - and here are the numbers that prove it. Click through to see the full chart (h/t Ampere Analysis)

Paramount sweetens its WBD bid with a $40 billion guarantee from Larry Ellison — but doesn't increase the price Paramount and Netflix's bidding war for WBD heats up as Paramount revises its offer with a $40.4 billion guarantee from Larry Ellison.

Happy Monday. Here's your latest in the battle for Warner Bros, Paramount sweetening its 'superior' bid over Netflix: www.businessinsider.com/paramount-re...

Netflix has done its second big podcast deal as it prepares to launch a slate of shows in early 2026 Netflix's podcast deal with iHeartMedia brings exclusive video podcasts like "The Breakfast Club" and "My Favorite Murder" to the streamer in 2026.

Netflix is chasing podcaster deals; here's who it got (& didn't) with its latest video podcast deal, with iHeartMedia: www.businessinsider.com/netflix-ihea...

Netflix's bid to buy Warner Bros. hinges on a key question: Who does it actually compete with? Netflix and Warner Bros. have a deal, but regulators must approve the move. The question of how to define Netflix's market is a major consideration.

Who are Netflix's competitors? The answer matters now that it wants to buy WBD
www.businessinsider.com/netflix-warn...

Read the letter Netflix's co-CEOs sent to reassure staffers about its bid to buy Warner Bros. Netflix laid out the rationale for acquiring Warner Bros, saying the deal is: "pro-consumer, pro-innovation, pro-worker, pro-creator, and pro-growth."

Netflix doubles down on why it's the best bidder for WBD, saying it's 'supporting jobs' & puts them in the theater business, but without specifics www.businessinsider.com/netflix-co-c...

The big problem Disney is looking to solve with its OpenAI deal Disney faces an engagement problem as kids gravitate to YouTube. It's looking to OpenAI to help boost engagement.

Disney has a big problem - can Bob Iger's OpenAI deal solve it? www.businessinsider.com/disney-taps-...

MrBeast reveals where he's placing his next video bets as viewers become 'numb' to spectacles and cash giveaways MrBeast laid out how he's updating his YouTube strategy with a focus on storytelling and longer videos, and new formats like animation.

@mrbeastbr.bsky.social won YouTube with spectacles and giveaways. His next act: getting people to 'feel things'
www.businessinsider.com/mrbeast-shif...

What Warner Bros. Discovery sale means for Hollywood jobs, streaming prices, and movies The real story of the fight for Warner Bros. Discovery is viewers shifting from studios to tech platforms, impacting how and what you watch.

How did we get to the @wbd bidding war? To answer that, viewers can start by looking in the mirror
www.businessinsider.com/warner-bros-...

@lanceaschart.bsky.social Hi Lance, I'm a reporter at Business Insider, hoping to get in touch for a story. May I contact you? lmoses@insider.com

A Koch-funded group is tapping star marketers for a $250 million push to 'reignite the American spirit' The Koch-funded Stand Together is supporting a new effort that's lined up top marketers to boost civic engagement around America's 250th birthday.

Scoop: a Koch-tied group is lining up support from Madison Ave and bigs like Mark Cuban to launch a 'unite America' campaign during the nation's birthday, separate from the official, Trump-planned celebrations.
www.businessinsider.com/koch-funded-...

Read the deck a talent manager uses to help Hollywood pros pivot to the creator economy Talent firm G&B Digital Management has been hosting creator economy classes for Hollywood pros as the TV and film industries face challenges.

New from me: Talent firm G&B Digital Management shared the deck it uses to help Hollywood pros parlay their skills to the creator economy as traditional entertainment work wanes. Check it out here: www.businessinsider.com/slide-deck-t...