Trending Stories
GTA 6 trailer breaks YouTube records
Earlier this week, Rockstar released its trailer for the brand new and highly anticipated GTA 6.
GTA fans scurried to YouTube to check what was in store in the latest game. It reached 90,421,491 views in 24 hours and become the most-viewed YouTube video in 24 hours that isn’t a music video.
The trailer was only a minute and a half long. But in that short time, there was lots of excitement around some new characters, storylines, and the incredible graphics that would be gracing the game.
Rockstar has announced that GTA 6 will not be out until 2025. Some gamers have started sharing their excitement all over TikTok and Twitter. Some have even planned annual leave around the release date!
Written by: Tilly Rowsell
Oxford University Press Announces Word of the Year
Oxford University Press, renowned for the Oxford English Dictionary, has officially crowned “rizz” as the 2023 Word of the Year. Derived from Gen Z slang, it signifies style, charm, or attractiveness. Originating in internet and gaming culture, the term gained traction in 2022, propelled by content creator Kai Cenat and a viral moment with actor Tom Holland.
Casper Grathwohl, president of Oxford Languages, notes the word’s transition from niche to mainstream, highlighting the impact of social media on language evolution. Social media has impacted the Word of the Year over the past few years. The power of social media is truly unstoppable.
Written by: Matthew Bleaney
Swifties rejoice as Taylor is named Time’s Person of the Year
Pop sensation Taylor Swift has clinched the title of Times Magazine’s Person of the Year for 2023. The 33-year-old music icon, now a billionaire following her extensive 66-date tour, triumphed over notable contenders like Putin and Barbie.
Swift’s eventful year featured the highly successful Eras Tour, the release of her reimagined ‘1989’ album, and her first public acknowledgement of her relationship with NFL star Travis Kelce. Reflecting on her tumultuous past, Swift opened up about her challenges after being ‘cancelled’ and emphasised her newfound trust and openness in navigating the public eye. Swifties took to social media to celebrate and fan over her promotional images with her cats.
Written by: Matthew Bleaney
Toby’s Tiny Tales
Welcome back to Toby’s Tiny Tales. Toby Fairhead, a RISE Academy graduate, now Senior Campaign Executive in our London team, has three top recommendations of what you should stream, watch, and read this weekend:
Read
Are we addicted to consumerism?
Humans love to buy things. But we’re also quick to throw things away. Learn how to be more sustainable with your shopping habits.
Watch
The progress of working to a green world – 20 mins
Discover how green the move to renewable clean energy has really been.
Listen
AI may break through current human intelligence – 28 mins
As AI learns more and more, the tool may begin to transcend current human intelligence.
Platform Updates
Believe the hype: Instagram tests out new reactions to Stories
Instagram continues to develop the scope of reactions it offers, and this week trialled a new feature for Stories. The latest development on the app will allow users to comment on a story in real-time. This will enable other users to view the reactions via a feed.
This move will bring Instagram closer to formats pioneered by Snapchat and TikTok, where levels of interaction are increased across all touch points. It seems every social media giant has one goal in mind: to keep users scrolling 24/7. Is Meta struggling to keep pace with newer, shinier apps? Facebook’s heyday is certainly over, with a 2022 study finding that only 32% of teens use the platform. Given this, it’s no surprise that Instagram is unveiling new developments every day to move with the times. If you can’t beat them, join them!
Written by: Amy Blakelock
TikTok expands in-app ticket sales with Ticketmaster partnership
In the US last year, TikTok launched a new partnership with Ticketmaster, allowing users to buy tickets directly through videos across the app. Select creators are also allowed to “search for relevant Ticketmaster events and add destination links to their videos.”
The feature will now be expanded to users in 20 markets, as announced by TikTok; “The partnership promises to bring music fans closer to their favourite artists as it expands in the U.S. and launches for the first time in the UK, Ireland, Australia, Germany, France,” and more. All certified artists and creators will now also be able to use this feature to promote their shows. This has already been proven a success for smaller artists looking to gain traction and build a growing fanbase.
With TikTok already being a critical platform in the development and expansion of many artists’ music careers, this growing integration with Ticketmaster is just another way in which the platform is looking to “deepen is roots” in the music industry.
Written by: Ellie-Mae Turner-Wood
SnapChat collabs with Elf for Bit Moji glow up with first virtual make-up drop
Now, with purportedly over a trillion possible outfit combinations for Bitmoji characters, Snapchat is taking its next leap into the world of digital fashion. Premiering the first ever digital make-up drop, which will allow snap users to glow up their Bitmoji characters with the latest lipstick from e.l.f.
It’s put forward that users seeing their avatars in clothing can encourage real-world purchases. It will be interesting to see if this transfers well with makeup. The added option on the ‘try on lense’ allows users to see how each shade would look on them through the use of AR. 11 different shades will be available to try from the new ‘O FACE Satin lipstick’ range. This is an ingenious attempt to make use of Bitmoji as a possible bridge to the next stage of digital connectivity. Leveraging the metaverse for real-world outcomes.
Written by: Struan Walker
That’s This Week in Social all wrapped up!
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