We get it, you’re good at journalism!
There was some amazing reporting and writing published this year, and we compiled a list of some of our favorite stories we read in the past 12 months from publications other than our own. We broke it down based on the subjects we focus on the most—and we hope you take the time to read some of these great stories from across the web.
Social
Vox exposed “the lie of ‘deinfluencing,’” ending all hope that anyone on social media will ever try to help curb our shopping habits.
The New York Times dove into Gen Z’s disillusionment with brands turning everything into a joke, and also explored more serious topics like internal documents about how TikTok was sharing user data and research that found “YouTube ads may have led to online tracking of children.”
Streaming
Rolling Stone reported on HBO CEO and chairman Casey Bloys’s habit of directing staffers to use secret Twitter accounts to troll “television critics with snarky responses from a fake Twitter account—and [drop] pro-HBO comments on trade publication stories.” (After the report, Bloys ended up apologizing.)
CNBC’s Alex Sherman dug deep into Bob Iger’s return to the CEO post at Disney, the ouster of former CEO Bob Chapek, and the executive turnover and company turmoil that accompanied it all.
GQ profiled Eddy Cue, senior vice president of Apple’s services division, who is leading Apple’s aggressive push into live sports rights.
Sports
The WNBA had quite a year, and on the heels of the league’s finals, the Washington Post took a look at the strained relationship between some of its players and the media.
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Speaking of the WNBA, the New York Times put one of its biggest stars on everyone’s radar: Ellie the Elephant, the “twerking mascot” of the New York Liberty.
Aaron Rodgers’s torn Achilles was one of the biggest stories of this NFL season so far, and the Wall Street Journal quickly reported out sponsors’ reactions.
“Amazon misread the NFL ad market,” The Information declared in its report that the tech giant overestimated the audience for its Thursday Night Football games when negotiating with some advertisers.
Bloomberg noted that, with several big broadcast rights deals expiring, ESPN may have to pay big bucks to keep showing some of the biggest women’s sports. Several months later, that network, along with CBS, Amazon Prime Video, and Scripps Sports, signed a four-year media rights deal with the NWSL worth $240 million.
Celebs
The New York Times profiled actor Stephanie Courtney, perhaps best known as Flo from Progressive.
Bloomberg reported on signs that “the golden era of celebrity beauty brands” may be coming to a close.
Culture
The Atlantic covered the (somewhat surprising) success of in-person shopping, as illustrated by Bass Pro Shops.
The Daily Beast wrote about the ever-important debate between AMC Theaters’s Nicole Kidman ad and Regal Cinemas’s pre-movie promo filled with film quotes.
The New Yorker and The Atlantic both wrote aboutwhat happens when online purchases get returned.
Vox chronicled the rise of “the girlouboros,” fueled by trends like “girl dinners” and “hot girl walks.”