Welcome to the latest issue of Keeping It Currant, a newsletter brought to you by Social Currant & Girl and the Gov®. If you’re new here, this monthly inbox drop lives at the intersection of the creator economy and the social impact space, providing the latest need-to-know on how to navigate this rapidly evolving digital space. And since we’re doing introductions, before you scroll, be sure to pop in and say hello in the Social Currant’s Slack channel for creators, here.
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ADD TO THE CAL
Creator events to add to your cal
CREATOR BRIEFING: VOTING RIGHTS & VOTER PROTECTION
About: Join Democracy Defenders Action and partners for creator-forward briefing on voting rights and voter protection. Specifically, it will provide creators with tips on how to talk about voting rights and voter protection, and equip them with content ideas and talking points to adapt in their own voice.
When: April 6, 2026; 7:00-7:45pm
Where: Virtual
MENTAL HEALTH WORKSHOP: PREVENTING BURNOUT
About: Join The Jed Foundation and Social Currant for an interactive conversation about burnout and what it really looks like for creators. The event will explore how it shows up, what drives it, and simple ways to stay connected to your energy, intention, and well-being.
When: April 28, 2026; 6:00-6:45pm EST
Where: Virtual
BOOK RELEASE HAPPY HOUR: DR. JENNIFER LINCOLN
About: Join Social Currant for an evening celebrating the release of The Birth Book, a powerful, evidence-based guide to navigating labor and delivery by leading OB-GYN and trusted social media educator, Dr. Jennifer Lincoln. Come grab a bite to eat, connect with a thoughtful community, and hear from Dr. Lincoln directly about the importance of accessible, medically-sound information. Free copies of The Birth Book will be available at the event with a book signing at the end!
When: April 30, 2026; 6:00-8:00pm
Where: DC [provided upon approval]
OPPORTUNITY BULLETIN
Creator-centric openings to go after
Join GIFFORDS’ Creators Against Gun Violence Program: The gun violence prevention organization founded by former Congresswoman and gun violence survivor, Gabby Giffords, is inviting creators to join its inaugural creator program. The program aims to bring together influencers, storytellers, and digital voices to raise awareness, spark conversation, and drive action around gun safety through meaningful, values-driven content. For those interested in learning more about the collaborative and paid content opportunities through the program, email Ashley Le at [email protected]. And for those looking to get a monthly debrief on campaigns, collabs, and all-things GIFFORDS, this quick form is for you.
Tap into creator collabs with ACLU TX: Calling all Texas creators with a passion for yapping the yap on Texas political and gov happenings – ACLU Texas is on the search for content creators to collaborate with. Creators that are interested in working with the org, can drop an email to [email protected] or a note in the comment section of this post.
Join David’s Bridal Style Squad Ambassador Program: For creators who are booked and busy attending weddings just about every weekend in the foreseeable future, there’s the David’s Bridal Style Squad Ambassador Program. The new affiliate program is offering participating creators 20% commission on eligible sales, creator trainings, and more, which creators can tap into by joining here.
RESOURCE ROUND-UP
Save ‘em, share ‘em
→ For the creator with Cameo requests in their inbox: There was the George Santos Cameo phase. Then there was the Tom Sandoval Cameo phase. And now, there’s the TikTok Cameo phase, with the marketplace teaming up with TikTok to provide creators with an easy way to join the platform. Via the new partnership, creators can use the integration to field Cameo requests from fans and audience members directly in TikTok, keeping it all in the app. Notably, TikTok users can also search “Cameo” in the app to find a full library of the creators that offer Cameos.
→ For the creator that lives and breathes Canva: The HQ of graphic creation for everything from merch to posters to social media posts to rate decks, and beyond, Canva has teamed up with PayPal to bring Paypal Payment Links to the platform. With the new app availability, creators can now embed Paypal links into their designs, service offering and product lists, and more, providing a new streamlined method for making a sale that doesn’t force the customer to go to a new site or for the creator to have to a landing page elsewhere.
→ For the creator trying to get up to speed on AI: The AI orbit comes with a whole new language and short-hand, which if you're trying to get a handle on, might make you feel like you’re hallucinating the terms are so ridiculous. Speaking of the word hallucinating, it’s actually used in the AI lingo world, along with all of these terms laid out in TechCrunch’s ‘Simple Guide to Common AI Terms.’
→ For the creator who wants to opt out of TikTok’s AI Remix Setting: While this feature is still in the testing phase, it’s well… honestly, I’ll let CNET describe the concerns because they’re spot on. Alas, if you want to opt out of the feature, you’re going to have to go video by video [get your popcorn out because you’re gonna be there all night]. To opt-out, follow these instructions.
STATUS QUO
Reports, stats, & data to know in the creator world
The Current’s Podcast Data Debrief: This stats-heavy look at the behaviors of those that tune into podcasts is chock-full of revelations, including the fact that 80% of audience members both watch and listen to podcasts. While the compilation of data shows differences in preference between age groups and gender identity, it largely points to the benefit of producing shows for both audio and visual mediums. *Editor’s Note: The Current is not associated with Social Currant
Pew Research: Americans and the News: This fresh look at how Americans get their news from Pew Research is ripe for use in creators and orgs cultivating their media strategy. The report’s core takeaway is that 49% of U.S. adults get their news because they came across it as opposed to seeking it out. Translation: to get news to almost the majority of Americans, news content creators/journalists need to find a way to cut into their online and IRL feeds.
Patreon’s Podcast Deats & Digits: Creator industry OG Patreon is bringing the big numbies out to play with regards to the money podcasters are making on its platform – and seriously, they’re big. The platform reported that the money made by podcasters on Patreon in 2025 hit $629 million. Interestingly amongst the details shared in this Variety deep dive, 47,000 podcasters currently make some form of income via Patreon.
Nieman Lab’s Report on Social Traffic x News Publishers: This quick look report from Nieman Lab shows a note of concern for news publishers on social media sites – specifically those that link out to articles or other resources. The traffic is down, like way down in a way that should cause heads to come together for a brainstorm to troubleshoot around the issue.
CREATOR CHAT
A quick chat with a creator in social impact
MEET JESS NATALE: Jess Natale is the founder and sole operator of the Webby-nominated Instagram account So Informed. With a background steeped in activism, community organizing, politics, and journalism, she has dedicated her life to educating the public on a wide range of critical issues. Jess's expertise spans prison abolition, reproductive rights, political education, environmental justice, and more. She’s actively involved in protests and community organizing, working with grassroots organizations to amplify marginalized voices and drive systemic change.
Follow Jess on Instagram.
SOCIAL CURRANT: What's something you wish someone told you before starting to make content?
JESS NATALE: “It took me quite some time to realize that the content that I’m producing needs to resonate with me first and foremost. Spending too much time concerning myself with how content is going to resonate with others was something I had to quickly get over.”
SOCIAL CURRANT: What would you really like to see evolve in the political content space in the coming months? Are there any change points you're excited for?
JESS NATALE: “I’m very motivated to help shift the narrative away from “vote blue no matter who” to challenging folks to instead look at candidates with a critical eye and uplift those who truly have our best interests at heart.”
SOCIAL CURRANT: How do you get ideas for content? What does this process look like for you?
JESS NATALE: “I try to focus on amplifying news that is not dominating the headlines. A lot of state-level news often flies under the radar and it’s important to me to shine a light on those stories.”
SOCIAL CURRANT: When thinking of a dream content collab, what would it be? Who would it be with?
JESS NATALE: “I’d love to collaborate with The Equal Justice Initiative on a post about wrongful convictions or the death penalty. Bryan Stevenson is one of my personal heroes.”
SOCIAL CURRANT: As a creator yourself, what are you always excited to see other creators doing? Any trends or styles that come to mind?
JESS NATALE: “I enjoy seeing other creators getting out to protests and covering what’s happening on the ground. We need much more of that to counter this administration’s narrative.”
PLATFORM UPDATES
New capabilities loading…
YOUTUBE → A feature that enables the long-form content viewers to draw a line between themselves and short-form content, is really one that comes in the form of a revision on YouTube’s ‘Shorts timer’ launched last year. Now, the timer allows viewers to set their time limit on Shorts to zero, meaning they can just nix Shorts content from their phone-based platform experience. The TBD on this feature is – if it’s used as so – will it have an impact on Shorts’ views. Again, TBD.
INSTAGRAM → The platform has rolled out a new feature that will have anyone that’s susceptible to typos or hitting post too soon in the comment section, cheering loud and proud. The update enables users to edit comments that they leave on posts. To note – because this is actually of import – a comment can only be edited within 15 minutes of it being posted, keeping the receipts as well, receipts.
LINKEDIN → In a win for those that prefer to watch videos at 2x speed – or have grown overly accustomed to doing so on other social media platforms – there’s this update: LinkedIn has added playback speed control options for videos that users see in-feed. Those videos can now be watched at .5X and 2X speed.
HEADLINES
News at a glance from ‘round the creator sphere
DigiDay: Creator scandals have turned morality clauses into the go-to exit strategy
Mashable: The next YouTube? Amazon now allows creators to post content on its platform
Engadget: Meta is giving Threads on web a redesign that finally adds direct message
Social Media Today: YouTube expands C-SPAN partnership
Vogue Business: Will AI Kill the Creator Economy?
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