Surpassing CNN
On TikTok, COURIER continues to hit major milestones and build trust among younger audiences
This week, our national team passed a major milestone that I wanted to share with you. On Wednesday, one of our team members flagged that on TikTok, COURIER has now surpassed CNN in terms of lifetime total post engagements, despite having just a third of the cable news giant’s followers. That means more individuals on the platform have watched and then hit the “like” button on COURIER’s videos and content than on content from CNN, one of the most recognizable news brands in the world.
So far in June, COURIER has also received more video views on the platform than CNN, earning 233 million views compared to 209 million.
This milestone is important because, as social media platforms continue to evolve, they have made changes that prioritize delivering content that drives consistent views and engagement, rather than focusing on accounts with the largest number of followers. By these metrics of success, COURIER has rapidly become one of the top ten most-engaging U.S. news brands on the entire platform, far ahead of major media companies like the Washington Post and New York Times, as well as conservative outlets like FOX News and the Daily Wire (but in good company with our friends at NowThis!).
What’s particularly notable about this achievement is that our team only began to implement its national TikTok strategy in January 2024, just a year and a half ago. Many of these other brands have had a multi-year head start on us.
Despite a looming ban of the platform (ICYMI, Trump just extended the deadline for the forced sale of the platform by its Chinese parent company for the second time last week), TikTok remains a critical platform where millennial and Gen Z audiences spend hours of their time every day. There have been so many times over the past year where I meet parents who know about COURIER because it’s the only news their teenage kids share with them, or I am approached by groups of college students when I guest lecture at journalism schools who follow and share our national news content with their friends every day. No feedback could be more humbling or exciting to me because it means we are truly breaking through with audiences that other media brands aren’t, but who will have an outsized impact on the future of our country.
If you’re on TikTok and you’re not already following our work, you can scroll through our feed at @couriernewsroom.
- Tara
What I’m reading this week:
For the first time, social media overtakes TV as Americans’ top news source (Nieman, 6/16)
“For the first time, social media has displaced television as the top way Americans get news. “The proportion accessing news via social media and video networks in the United States (54%) is sharply up,” the report’s authors write, “overtaking both TV news (50%) and news websites/apps (48%) for the first time.”
The $900 Million Message That Missed the Moment: What Future Forward Got Wrong (Will Robinson Substack, 6/18)
“Trump didn’t win hearts with white papers - he won with defiance, identity, and story. Meanwhile, Future Forward had no story. They had a box full of “best-testing” spots and zero message architecture. No coherent theory of audience, no framework for repetition, no values-forward narrative that could anchor persuasion and mobilization.
We need to move forward - with new voices, a renewed commitment to emotional truth and narrative clarity, and an infrastructure built for persuasion, mobilization, and lasting power. Because this isn’t just about winning elections. It’s about what kind of country we become.”
Right-wing disinformation machine spins up a false profile of Minnesota shooting suspect (Media Matters, 6/16)
“The suspect is reportedly a Trump supporter who railed against abortion and the LGBTQ community. But as the public waited for more information, conservatives spun a profile of a far-left Tim Walz ally who assassinated Democratic lawmakers over immigration”
It’s Official: Streaming Is Now the King of TV (NYT, 6/17)
“In May, more Americans watched television on streaming than on cable and network television combined, Nielsen said. It is the first time that has happened over a full month.”
See you next week!
A reminder! For those of you in DC next Thursday, we’re hosting a happy hour event from 5-8 pm downtown, and I’d love to see you there and meet in person. You can RSVP and find details here >>