Co-Founder @ Measure Studio 📈 AI-Powered Social Media Insights

I’m a 3x entrepreneur and M&A advisor who helps founders sell their businesses.

👋 WHY ME?

After I sold my first startup (Paladin), several founder friends reached out to me. They wanted to know what it was like and what I learned in the process.

A few of them were thinking about selling their companies and asked if I would help. After all, I understood the industry and probably knew most of the potential buyers.

So I agreed to help a few of those friends and found myself with a new side hustle as a boutique investment banker.

After cutting my teeth on a few deals, I realized how much I love working with entrepreneurs, so I made it official and launched my own M&A advisory practice: Quartermast Advisors.

🤝 WHAT I OFFER:

I help my clients manage the entire M&A process from start to finish, which includes:

✭ Preparing your materials (management presentation, financials, etc.)
✭ Identifying and getting in touch with the right buyers
✭ Negotiating the deal structure and economics
✭ Coordinating with legal and tax experts to protect your interests
✭ Asking thoughtful questions and providing useful advice along the way

🤔 WHY WORK WITH AN M&A ADVISOR?

Research shows that hiring a banker results in ~25% higher valuation premiums, on average.

It also frees founders up to continue operating the business and hit their targets. There's nothing worse than poor company performance during a sales process, so it's often more valuable for the team to focus on delivering good results rather than managing M&A discussions.

👨‍💻 WHO I HELP:

I stick to what I know: digital media, tech, and the creator economy. I’ve helped sell influencer agencies, talent management firms, enterprise SaaS companies, and more.

If you’ve been approached or are just thinking about selling your company now or in the future, shoot me a note. I’d be happy to chat and answer any questions.

If I’m the right fit, I’d love to help you out. And if I’m not, I’ll gladly point you in the right direction.

💬 I'VE BEEN FEATURED IN:
- Business Insider
- Digiday
- eMarketer
- Forbes
- Net Influencer
- New Economies
- PRWeek
- Scalable
- The Information
- The Publish Press
- TheWrap
- They Got Acquired
- Tubefilter
…and more

📢 I'VE SPOKEN AT:
- 1 Billion Followers Summit
- Consumer Electronics Show (CES)
- Digital Entertainment World (DEW)
- Digital First
- Digital Hollywood
- DMEXCO
- Social Media Week
- VidCon
- Youth Marketing Show (YMS)
…and more

James Creech

That’s a wrap on my first 1 Billion Followers Summit in Dubai! 🇦🇪

Three days of nonstop momentum. Coffee meetings, panels, late nights, and afterparties.

A true whirlwind. I’m leaving with a deeper appreciation for the opportunity in MENA, and more friends than I arrived with.

𝐅𝐑𝐈𝐃𝐀𝐘
Kicked things off with my first panel, “Fixing Creator Payments Globally.” A fantastic conversation with Germán López, Amina Taher, and Kwadwo Owusu-Agyeman.

Hats off to our world-class emcees, AJ Eckstein and Shira Lazar!

Back-to-back meetings that afternoon. Catching up with old friends and making new ones. 

That night, Sebastian Wulff and I hosted an exec networking mixer alongside Althea Lim and Cordell Broadus from Gushcloud International. We ended up WAY over venue capacity… but decided to ask for forgiveness instead of permission.

Big thanks to our sponsors Ilia Dronov (Fundmates) and Arjun Pande (.Store Domains) for making it happen!

After that, it was off to the 1BFS speakers’ dinner in the desert. Certainly an unforgettable experience (IYKYK). Shoutout to Reuven Ashtar, Timothy Goodman, Will Baumann, and Arthur Leopold for being great company throughout.

𝐒𝐀𝐓𝐔𝐑𝐃𝐀𝐘
Meetings. More meetings. And then… a few more meetings.

Snuck away in the afternoon to explore the Museum of the Future and refuel with pistachio gelato. 🍦

Got interviewed for Career Ladder 🪜, then back to the room for emails and a quick nap.

Incredible dinner at Chic Nonna, then off to Sherry Wong’s Creators & Operators party. Loved catching up with Ollie Forsyth, Kathleen Grace, Kimber Mowery, and others.

Assembled a rag-tag band of scoundrels (Jacques Keyser, Ivana Kirkbride, and Sebastian Wulff) and headed to the Palm for the "Inner Circle" after-party. 

Big thanks to Lukas Steiner, Didrik M. A. Svendsen, Philip Madero Hammarskiöld, Lucas Kollmann, and Tobias Hoss for hosting. Those Europeans know how to throw a party!

Back to the hotel. Crash.

𝐒𝐔𝐍𝐃𝐀𝐘
Spontaneous breakfast with Melissa Grabiner and her husband Craig. So great to finally meet in person!

Took the stage for a keynote on the State of Creator Economy M&A. Shared data on recent acquisitions, key trends, and predictions for 2026.

Moderated a panel on “Why Creators Can’t Get Funded." Eric Kullberg, George Gachara, and Criswell Fiordalis dropped some knowledge about funding options for creator-led businesses.

Had a delicious Lebanese lunch, followed by a few final meetings and a fun hang with Brittany Li and Abby Ho.

---
Huge thank you to Jim Louderback, Nizar Salman, and Dina Aylabouni for making the entire event possible. I had an amazing time and am already looking forward to next year!

Founder, Quartermast Advisors 🤝 We help entrepreneurs maximize their M&A outcomes. 🚀 Co-Founder, Measure Studio 📈 AI-powered social media insights.💡

I'm giving a keynote about the State of Global M&A in the Creator Economy tomorrow at the 1 Billion Followers Summit. Here's a preview:

🚀 2025 was a record year for creator economy acquisitions, with 81 deals completed (+17% YoY).

📈 Transaction sizes continue to climb, led by headline deals like Bending Spoons x Vimeo ($1.38B), Later x Mavely ($250M), and Publicis x Captiv8 ($175M).

👩🏻‍💻 Software companies are most in demand (26%), followed by Agencies (21%), Media (16%), and Talent Management (14%).

🌎 The U.S. dominates M&A activity, accounting for 71% of all transactions.

I'll also share typical valuation multiples, buyer archetypes, and practical tips for founders considering an exit.

Please join me tomorrow if you're interested!

Sunday, Jan 11th at 11 am on the Binance Stage.

After my talk, I'll be moderating a panel about Why Creators Can't Get Funded with the incredible Criswell Fiordalis, George Gachara, and Eric Kullberg, so please join us for that as well!

Takeaways from Slow Ventures' Creator CEO Summit:

➊ Depth over breadth. Epic Gardening has proved how obsessing over a niche can unlock outsized scale and long-term value.

➋ Content is the wedge, not necessarily the entire business. Many of the best creator companies use content to earn trust, then evolve into operating businesses with real products, teams, and systems.

➌ Mary Heffernan from Five Marys Ranch gave a masterclass on building and monetizing an online community. Some of her pearls of wisdom:

When it comes to content: "Share the good and the bad, but not the ugly."

"We don't get a lot of haters, but I try really hard not to invite them. We don't soap box."

➍ Timing is everything. Several founders emphasized restraint, waiting for the right product, timing, and capital structure instead of launching too early.

➎ Early-stage progress looks messy, but that's okay. Getting the train moving requires solving real problems for a specific audience, even when the path isn’t linear.

➏ There’s no single creator-to-company playbook. Pet grooming, dental health, and entertainment founders all took different paths. What mattered was alignment with their audience’s needs.

➐ The best creator businesses feel inevitable in hindsight. They start small, stay focused, and earn the right to expand, rather than chasing scale over substance.

Unofficial afterparty at Mao's Kitchen, which is hands down the best Chinese food in LA. 🥡

Shoutout to Megan Lightcap and Billy Parks for organizing such a great event!

Missed my keynote at the 1 Billion Followers Summit?

I broke down the data from all 81 creator economy acquisitions last year. Here are the highlights:

📈 Annual deal volume increased 17% YoY, resulting in the biggest year on record for creator economy M&A.

🌍 North America dominated, with 71% of transactions, followed by Europe (21.5%) and Asia (3.8%).

🤝 Primary acquisition targets included software (26%), agencies
(21%), media (16%), and talent management (14%). Despite rising deal volumes, the category mix remained remarkably consistent YoY, suggesting broad-based conviction rather than a single trend-driven surge.

💰 Average transaction sizes increased meaningfully, and landmark deals like Bending Spoons x Vimeo, Later x Mavely, and Publicis x Captiv8 set strong valuation benchmarks.

🔮 We expect even more deals in 2026, driven by an increase in creator-founded company exits, more picks-and-shovels acquisitions, and non-endemic buyers entering the space.

I also break down typical valuation multiples, buyer archetypes, and practical tips for founders planning for an exit.

🔗 Watch the full presentation here: https://lnkd.in/guN_7sAB

---
I'm James Creech, Founder of Quartermast Advisors. We help media, tech, and creator economy founders maximize their exit outcomes.

👍 Like this post to help me.
🔥 Repost to help others.

It’s been an explosive start to the year for creator economy M&A. 🧨 

16 transactions were announced in the past month alone — a 78% YoY increase compared to Jan 2025.

To be fair, January is typically one of the busiest months for M&A announcements, as many late-Q4 deals are shared after the holidays. Still, the momentum is hard to ignore.

Below is a complete list of creator economy acquisitions from the past month.👇

𝐀𝐠𝐞𝐧𝐜𝐲 🤝
• PMG acquired IM agency Digital Voices
• YKONE and Mirror Mirror Paris merged to form ONE Group
• Gushcloud International acquired IM agency Talent Plus
• Residence acquired creator-first social agency OK COOL
• YKONE acquired social and IM agency FAB STUDIO

𝐂𝐨𝐦𝐦𝐞𝐫𝐜𝐞 🛍️
• Rich Sparkle Holdings acquired Khaby Lame's live commerce co. Step Distinctive for a reported $975M

𝐌𝐞𝐝𝐢𝐚 🎥
• Global acquired sports media co. The Overlap
• NowThis acquired creator media co. Salary Transparent Street for a reported "7-figure acquihire"
• SuperAwesome acquired kids audio co. Starglow Media
• Katie Gatti Tassin bought back her "Money with Katie" blog and podcast from Morning Brew
 
𝐒𝐨𝐟𝐭𝐰𝐚𝐫𝐞 👨‍💻
• Blue Zones acquired creator meal planning & community app Lighter
• Cloudflare acquired AI data marketplace Human Native
• Kolsquare | B Corp acquired IM platform Storyclash
• WSC Sports acquired sports marketing platform Partnerbrite for an estimated $10M

𝐓𝐚𝐥𝐞𝐧𝐭 𝐌𝐚𝐧𝐚𝐠𝐞𝐦𝐞𝐧𝐭 ⭐
• Fixated acquired Ellify Talent Agency
• UnderCurrent Talent acquired Next Step Talent*

*𝘕𝘰𝘵𝘦: 𝘐𝘮𝘢𝘨𝘦 𝘢𝘤𝘤𝘪𝘥𝘦𝘯𝘵𝘢𝘭𝘭𝘺 𝘩𝘢𝘴 𝘣𝘶𝘺𝘦𝘳 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘵𝘢𝘳𝘨𝘦𝘵 𝘳𝘦𝘷𝘦𝘳𝘴𝘦𝘥. 𝘈𝘱𝘰𝘭𝘰𝘨𝘪𝘦𝘴 𝘧𝘰𝘳 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘵𝘺𝘱𝘰! 𝘓𝘪𝘯𝘬𝘦𝘥𝘐𝘯 𝘸𝘰𝘯'𝘵 𝘭𝘦𝘵 𝘮𝘦 𝘦𝘥𝘪𝘵 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘪𝘮𝘢𝘨𝘦 𝘢𝘧𝘵𝘦𝘳 𝘱𝘰𝘴𝘵𝘪𝘯𝘨.

All signs point to another record year for creator economy M&A!

---
👋 I'm James Creech, Founder of Quartermast Advisors. We help media, tech, and creator economy founders maximize their exit outcomes.

👍 Like this post to help me.
🔥 Repost to help others.

Our 2026 Creator Economy M&A Report is out now!

We analyzed all 81 creator economy acquisition from 2025 to understand the key trends shaping the future of this rapidly growing industry.

Here are just some of the highlights:

𝐓𝐫𝐚𝐧𝐬𝐚𝐜𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧 𝐕𝐨𝐥𝐮𝐦𝐞 📈
Creator economy M&A activity exploded during the pandemic (2020–2022), and then remained fairly steady in subsequent years. Deal volume surged again in 2025, with a record-setting 81 deals (+17% YoY).

𝐓𝐚𝐫𝐠𝐞𝐭 𝐏𝐫𝐨𝐟𝐢𝐥𝐞𝐬 📋
Software companies are the most popular acquisition targets (26%), followed by Agencies (21%), Media (16%), and Talent Management (14%).

𝐆𝐞𝐨𝐠𝐫𝐚𝐩𝐡𝐢𝐜 𝐃𝐢𝐬𝐭𝐫𝐢𝐛𝐮𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧 🌎
North America is the most active M&A market by far. International deal volume dropped last year, but we hope to see it rebound in 2026.

North America: 56 deals (71%)
Europe: 17 deals (21%)
Asia: 3 deals (4%)
Australasia: 2 deals (3%)
South America: 1 deal (1%)
Africa: 0 deals (0%)

𝐕𝐚𝐥𝐮𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧 𝐌𝐮𝐥𝐭𝐢𝐩𝐥𝐞𝐬 💰
Software valuations are based on annual recurring revenue (ARR), while service businesses trade on an EBITDA multiple.

Agency: 5.3x - 9.2x EBITDA (7.1x median)
Media: 8.0x - 17.0x EBITDA (11.6x median)
Software: 3.2x - 10.7x ARR (5.8x median)
Talent Management: 4.0x - 8.0x (6.0x median)

👉 Get your free copy of the full 39-page report here: https://lnkd.in/gTd9xP6K

Thank you Sydney Bradley at Business Insider for sharing our latest research!

And special thanks to our sponsors for making this report possible:

𝐆𝐨𝐥𝐝 𝐒𝐩𝐨𝐧𝐬𝐨𝐫𝐬: Electrify Video Partners, NEW ECONOMIES

𝐒𝐢𝐥𝐯𝐞𝐫 𝐒𝐩𝐨𝐧𝐬𝐨𝐫𝐬: .Store Domains, Favikon

𝐁𝐫𝐨𝐧𝐳𝐞 𝐒𝐩𝐨𝐧𝐬𝐨𝐫𝐬: Creator Authority, Fundmates, & They Got Acquired

The creator economy is Wall Street ready.

Ian Shepherd's latest Forbes article emphasizes how our industry is maturing into a scalable, investable ecosystem with strong business models, owned IP, and defensible moats.

It's characterized "not just by explosive growth, but by investor conviction."

Our team at Quartermast Advisors agrees. As we enter 2026, acquirers are prioritizing profitable growth and defensible long-term business models over raw scale or audience reach.

This shift favors companies with operational maturity, diversified revenue streams, and strong unit economics. We expect more high-conviction deals, further cementing the creator economy as a durable and investable asset class.

Thank you, Ian, for sharing your perspective as an active investor in the space and highlighting the research from our 2026 Creator Economy M&A Report!

Read the full article here: https://lnkd.in/gQFBS9k8

Special thanks to our sponsors for making our 2026 Creator Economy M&A Report possible:

𝐆𝐨𝐥𝐝 𝐒𝐩𝐨𝐧𝐬𝐨𝐫𝐬: Electrify Video Partners, NEW ECONOMIES

𝐒𝐢𝐥𝐯𝐞𝐫 𝐒𝐩𝐨𝐧𝐬𝐨𝐫𝐬: .Store Domains, Favikon

𝐁𝐫𝐨𝐧𝐳𝐞 𝐒𝐩𝐨𝐧𝐬𝐨𝐫𝐬: Fundmates, Creator Authority, They Got Acquired

NEW ECONOMIES is hands down one of my favorite newsletters.

Former VC and active angel investor Ollie Forsyth covers technology shifts across AI, the creator economy, and venture capital and shares fascinating founder stories.

That's why we were thrilled to partner with him for our 2026 Creator Economy M&A Report. 

Make sure to subscribe if you're not already! https://lnkd.in/gNX3-dvU

Special thanks to New Economies and all our sponsors who made the report possible:

𝐆𝐨𝐥𝐝 𝐒𝐩𝐨𝐧𝐬𝐨𝐫𝐬: Electrify Video Partners, NEW ECONOMIES

𝐒𝐢𝐥𝐯𝐞𝐫 𝐒𝐩𝐨𝐧𝐬𝐨𝐫𝐬: .Store Domains, Favikon

𝐁𝐫𝐨𝐧𝐳𝐞 𝐒𝐩𝐨𝐧𝐬𝐨𝐫𝐬: Fundmates, Creator Authority, They Got Acquired

Digital Media Veteran / Building Digital Businesses, Moving Culture

Phil is a pioneer of the digital media revolution, working as a pre-YouTube professional web video producer in 2005, video content app creator before the smartphone revolution in 2007, an early exec in the MCN boom with two successful exits, and as the Head Gaming Creators at Facebook and Mobcrush, driving the live streaming and the creator-driven media paradigm shift. Currently, as COO of Fixated, Phil is creator services with Fortnite UEFN and Roblox games, creator-focused products, branded integrations, and critical infrastructure necessary to scale a creator's media business.

Previously, Phil was the Head of Gaming Creators, North America at Facebook and the Head of Creators at Mobcrush. In both roles, the departments saw significant growth working with top game streaming talent including Ronda Rousey, Disguised Toast, Corinna Kopf, Shroud, and Nate Hill, to name a few.

Phil was the COO of Studio71, one of the world's largest MCNs, growing the network from 1 billion to over 8 billion monthly views in 3 years with over 1,000 creators.

Before S71, Phil joined Fullscreen as the Head of Channel Partnerships as the 9th employee, completing his tenure as the VP of Networks. He grew the network to the largest MCN in the world (on comScore) in less than 1 year. He was the recipient of Fullscreen's first "Founders Award" for his role in building the industry-leading company.

In May 2006, Phil worked for Viva! Vision, who powered the #1 Latin channel designed specifically for mobile (Viva! Vision TV), the #1 Action Sports channel on V-Cast, and over a dozen mobile phone channels. Phil produced hundreds of hours of successful, digital-endemic original content.

In 2005, Phil created a comedy series for Turner's broadband channel SuperDeluxe.com, for which he acted as producer, director, and editor, called "Party Animals."  A trailer for the pilot was shown on national television when it placed top 5 in FX's "Make Your Own Pilot Competition."

Phil was also a popular comedian, performing at such prestigious LA venues as the Second City Los Angeles (and acting in their touring company aboard Norwegian Cruise Lines), the Upright Citizen's Brigade Theater (improv program graduate), and comedy festivals across America. As a content creator, his videos have received over 100 million views on digital platforms bolstered by his work as a talent/producer on the YouTube channel "PronunciationManual" and co-hosts the "Two and a Half Sportsmen" podcast.

Phil Ranta

Can we talk about early-stage CEO FOMO?

I'm missing CES, 1 Billion Follower Summit, and Creator Economy Live in January.

I've missed most Los Angeles-based creator economy meetups recently.

Had to miss multiple holiday parties.

Gotta keep my hands on the keyboard.

Because at this stage of Stealth Talent, the KPIs aren't going to hit themselves.

Every second Brian Foster, Katarina Marossy, and I, along with our awesome team, aren't knocking it out of the park for our clients, the company is standing still.

The FOMO is real. Everyone have a wonderful time and safe travels.

Consider this selfie our 'coffee meeting' we would have had.

CEO, Stealth Talent - Building Digital Businesses, Moving Culture / 20 yr Digital Media Veteran

That’s a wrap on Creator Economy Live West! Some thoughts:

- Brands aren’t just looking for reps to pitch creators anymore. They want you to pitch ‘creative’. I had a 100% hit rate for interest on a celebrity live stream we’re doing next month, and even top creators in our roster got <50% interest.

- The influencer marketing platforms were out in full force and were pitching product features, not just ‘make influencer marketing easier!’ It feels like everyone ‘gets’ influencers now, and deals are won on efficiency and simplicity.

- IRL was the talk of the show! I had about 5 meetings where people unexpectedly asked what we can do on that front. Time to be prepared for that answer! I feel like we can thank Speed and Kai for that.

- I have a new strategy for meeting new people: if you have an open meal slot just book a table somewhere and invite everyone you want to meet through the app. In 45 minutes I rallied a table of 12 people and it was my highlight of the show! If any brands want me to do that for you at the next show, just cover my T&E and the bill!

- Challenger brands get it. They want a big partnership with a big talent to get them going. Happy to give up equity for needle-movers. We’re probably going to be structuring 5 more cap tables coming out of this!

- Let’s never do a panel or keynote again. I walked into some amazing sessions that had 20 people in the audience. It’s embarrassing for the speaker and weird for the audience. Let’s get some MrBeast-style spectacle in those rooms!

- The Chase Sapphire lounge in the Southwest terminal in Vegas is incredible. Free coffee, free WiFi, free really good food, and less loud slot machine noise >>>
 https://lnkd.in/gyuQByPt

No alternative text description for this image

I lied to you.

I said I wasn’t going to Creator Economy Live in Vegas this week.

Now I’m on a plane.

Too many meeting requests to miss it.

See you there?

There’s a Creator Bill of Rights in Congress. 

I need your help.

Ro Khanna, Shira Lazar, dedicated creator advocates (Me!), and hundreds of creators came together to make this bill, which will act as a roadmap to pass legislation to advocate for the career decided by more than 50% of Gen Z.

But we need more of Congress to sign on.

And the best part: this is bi-partisan!

It will help us get resources, benefits, platform transparency, and more. Issues both sides of the aisle cared deeply about during the big tech Congressional grillings.

If your company claims to be ‘for creators, by creators’ it’s time to prove it.

Okay, now the part where I ask for help: share and tag people in Congress so they sign on.

Let’s get some worker’s rights for creators going Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez for Congress, Ayanna Pressley, Mark Kelly for Senate, Chris Coons for Delaware, Ted Cruz, and colleagues!

America can lead in this valuable growing industry, but we need your help!!

The press >>>  https://lnkd.in/gCxP3HYH

Some people who I think would love this: Daniel Abas Avi Gandhi (Creator Logic) Monica Khan Gil Kruger Tim Mulligan Brendan Gahan Brett Dashevsky France Tantiado Dylan Huey Lindsey Gamble

FaZe Clan is no more. Was it always doomed to end this way?

I don't think so.

In fact, it took a lot of bad decisions from outside forces to get them to this point.

Don't worry about them. Everyone who made those bad decisions is doing great. That's the secret of corporate America.

In this edition of 'The Creator Rep' I break down the key moments that brought FaZe Clan to collapse and my three golden rules to keep creator-led organizations surviving and thriving.

Also in this edition:

🐥 Popeyes Tries Streamer Meals Again
📉 YouTube Quits the Billboard Charts
🦾 Meta Buys Manus AI
🤷🏻 Marco Rubio Claims EU Will Arrest US Social Media Users
💪🏼 Jobs from IPSY, Kajabi, and Sony Music Entertainment
🎭 …and a dank meme from yours truly!

As always, if you enjoy the newsletter, please share it with everyone you know!

Here it is >>> https://lnkd.in/gEtmwrdg

And just for fun, I want to send you the first 100 short, actionable editions of 'Grow 1%' as an ebook. Do one per day, and by April, you'll be smarter at social media growth than most pros. Comment 'GROW' below and make sure you're following so I can DM it to you!

The Metaverse is thriving. And the numbers make MrBeast look quaint.

In this edition, we talk about some crazy stats and launches around Roblox and Fortnite, how creators have played along in the past, and the huge opportunity they've mostly missed.

Also in this edition:

🙅🏽 X Get’s X’ed in Multiple Countries for Deepfakes
📆 TikTok Launches a Screentime Calendar for Parents
🤩 Hannah Stocking Gets Her Own Vertical Microdrama
🤖 A Virtual Creator Re-Takes the Twitch Subscriber Crown
💪🏼 Jobs from TikTok, Red Bull Media House, and Taco Bell 
🎭 …and a dank meme from yours truly!

As always, if you like it, please share it with your team >>> https://lnkd.in/dFCmTFzj

And a HUGE thank you to RockWater Industries and Chris Erwin for sponsoring this edition. If you've ever thought about selling your creator business, hit them up!

In my Facebook feed, I was served AI videos labeled “Create and explore vibes”

It was sandwiched between two news stories in my feed.

And both videos surfaced showed violent supermarket riots.

Two things:

1. Nobody outside of the industry knows these are AI just because you label the box ‘vibes’. It auto-plays and looks just like Reels.

2. The labeling of AI content, especially when showing a potentially emotionally triggering and realistic scene like people trashing a supermarket, should be legally mandated, especially when it auto-plays.

I’m not being alarmist when I say this: unless our politicians and tech giants understand how unacceptable this is and we get legislation passed yesterday, AI can quickly bring about the destruction of objective truth.

My Facebook feed is already full of alarmists sharing phony headlines from phony news organizations that a simple search proves is 100% false, and people are defining their realities from their feed.

Add an administration that tells you not to trust your eyes and ears, who prefer a good story to actual science and research, and this gets dark fast.

Meta is failing us. Hard.

I’m calling my representatives about this daily. I recommend you do the same. And if they want to know why this is scary, feel free to share this story and screenshot of my actual feed.

And, no, I didn’t fake this with AI.

No, Kai Cenat is not quitting.

But he did seize the moment to get loud about the launch of his clothing brand, Vivet.

I'll break down the much-discussed video 'I Quit,' what most of the press got wrong (hint: they didn't actually watch it), and what creators can learn from it.

Also in this edition:

🧾Creators Get Their Own Bill of Rights
🏋🏽‍♀️ Ashton Hall was the Second Fastest Growing Instagram of 2025
📲 Threads Beats X on Mobile
🌎 Meta Lays Off 1,500 on Metaverse Team
💪🏼 Jobs from Amazon, Epic Games, and Apple
🎭 …and a dank meme from yours truly!

And, as always, if you like this newsletter, please support it by sharing it with the social media nerds in your life!

View the full edition here >>> https://lnkd.in/gwTWHZDH

Want high-quality video assets in seconds for free? I've got you covered.

Actually, popular video template apps have you covered.

But you can't just drag and drop whatever you have in your phone and expect it to look like a million bucks.

You need to give the template what it wants.

In this edition of 'Grow 1%' I go through a few of my favorite apps and show you edits I made in less than one minute.

As always, if you like the newsletter, please share it with everyone looking to grow on socials and who doesn't like reading too much!

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Open article: Working Backwards From Templates by Phil Ranta • 3 min read

Is 'zombie content' part of your social media strategy?

And this isn't just for horror creators.

I'm talking about content ready to come back to life by deleting and re-uploading.

I'll dive into the three factors every piece of zombie content must have and how to work it into your content plan.

As always, if you like the newsletter, please share with the social media nerds in your life!

Open article: Zombie Content by Phil Ranta • 3 min read

taplio

The Battle

James Creech

Phil Ranta

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Performance ScoreJames Creech's LinkedIn Performance

Performance ScorePhil Ranta's LinkedIn Performance

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taplio

The Battle

James Creech

Phil Ranta

Followers

Posts

Engagements

Likes

Performance Score.css-goub6s{font-size:var(--chakra-fontSizes-md);font-weight:500;color:var(--chakra-colors-gray-600);display:block;margin-top:var(--chakra-space-1);}James Creech's LinkedIn Performance

Performance ScorePhil Ranta's LinkedIn Performance

Ready to grow your LinkedIn presence?

Performance ScoreJames Creech's LinkedIn Performance