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Shifts in the Music industry
The rise of TikTok and users' viral dance videos with certain songs led to a change in how a song can become a top 10 hit. Up to 2020, radio was the guaranteed way make your song a hit. With TikTok, the platform gave an increased audience exposure to more artists and songs. The result of this can be seen on the Billboard top 10 charts, where all 10 songs are popular sounds on TikTok. -
The Rise of BookTok
In August, users on TikTok began to post quotes from new and classic books with the hashtag, #booktok. The popularity of these posts quickly rose and led to the resurgence of physical bookstores like Barnes Noble who, up to this point, was seeing a potentially business-ending decline in sales. -
Myanmar Coup
After the military seized power in Myanmar, the people used Twitter/X to organize protests and to expose the military's violent tactics. It was so effective to where the military eventually imposed internet blackouts in the country. -
Taylor Swift and Ticketmaster Controversy
When Ticketmaster's site crashed within an hour of Taylor Swift's Eras tour going on sale, fans vented their frustrations on TikTok, citing Ticketmaster's monpoly as a reason behind deceitful tactics like hiding certain fees and information. The outrage from fans led to congressional hearings and President Biden forcing Ticketmaster to abolish junk fees and be more transparent about the price consumers were paying. -
Instagram Shop Shutdown
In 2024, Meta decided to remove the IG shopping tab, which drew the ire of many small businesses who had relied heavily on Instagram shopping for income. Facing declines in sales, many businesses were forced to change their business model and migrate to alternative platforms like TikTok shop and Etsy.