Good morning. This week marks one year that Syd (one-half of this newsletter) has been with The Publish Press. The creator economy functions like dog years, so that basically amounts to five years of creator meme, trend, and business expertise. 

We could think of where we’d be without her, but we wouldn’t want to be there.

— Hannah Doyle & Syd Cohen

The UK has chosen its next Ted Lasso and it’s…KSI. This week, the Sidemen frontman became part owner of sixth-tier London football club Dagenham & Redbridge. KSI is taking a minority 20% stake, according to The Athletic.

“With this club, I want to do the unthinkable,” KSI said in a YouTube announcement. “I want to take Dagenham & Redbridge to the Premier League.”

How he got here: Between his personal channels and Sidemen, KSI has built a following of 100 million since 2009. He co-owns creator CPG brands PRIME and Lunchly and has his own record label. The Sidemen have sold out Wembley Stadium for charity football matches. 

His motivation to buy a minority stake in Dagenham & Redbridge partially stems from the FIFA YouTube series that helped launch his channel. 

In addition to building a better team, KSI wants to build community with the fans.

“I’m reachable,” he said. “You can let your frustrations out to me, or celebrate with me. I am approachable. What other owner do you know that’s sitting with the fans like this?”

The pitch: Other UK-based football teams—like Ryan Reynolds’ and Rob McElhenney’s Wrexham AFC—have seen substantial success following ownership changes, but this marks the first time a creator has gotten involved on an ownership level. Will KSI have what it takes to bring Dagenham & Redbridge to the Premier League?

Advertising news creators Breaking and Entering Media, led by Geno Schellenberger and Jack Westerkamp, are launching a live show today.

Breaking it down: 

Why go live? To experiment with format, streamline production, and lean into their chemistry.

“Geno and I’s ability to be on live and play off each other and flex the muscle of our friendship is [our competitive advantage],” Westerkamp said, “And the best way to take full advantage of that is via livestream where things are very real and in-the-moment.”

The episodes will air Tuesday–Thursday from 11am–1pm ET across X, YouTube, and LinkedIn, featuring guests from the ad industry. They’re also evolving their sales approach to include broader sponsorship packages.

“As opposed to a traditional creator model where you do a couple custom videos for your rate, we’re treating it more like a media network where you’re spending this amount of money and you're getting this number of impressions but it's spread out across short-form clips and ad reads,” Westerkamp said.

Read the room: The duo take inspiration from daily news show TBPN, who have grown a loyal following and million-dollar sponsorships in its first year. They join a growing niche-casting trend, where niche creators like Assistants vs. Agents and freight industry analyst Malcom Harris are launching weekly, high-quality livestreams.

Breaking and Entering’s end game? Become the number-one show for the advertising industry. 

“Our dream is that similar to how an office might have Bloomberg or MSNBC on their TV, we want ad agencies to have the Breaking and Entering live show on their TV and be that news source for daily marketing news,” Westerkamp said.

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Instagram is testing a new “shop the look” feature that allows users to shop products related to the Reel they are watching—without the creator linking to the product.

Context: Platforms including TikTok and Pinterest have rolled out similar features. For example, TikTok’s “Find Similar” button suggests products related to clothing items, makeup, or other products in videos. 

Although Meta does not take commission on the items sold through the new feature, neither do the creators—and there is currently no option for creators to opt out. 

Hi everyone, Syd and Hannah here. Earlier this week, we went to a live taping of a creator sitcom, Good Roomies, written by creators and Press readers Jonathan Gaurano and Alix Winschel. The twist? Audience participation is encouraged. 

Zoom in: Good Roomies is made up of a creator cast including Michelle Park, Motoki Maxed, Jade Duong, and Gaurano. The first episode is about Megan (played by Park) navigating her sexuality with support from her friends. 

The hour-long episode was acted in multiple vignettes with two cameramen recording the show and audience reactions. The cast made call-outs to the audience and responded to laughs, shouts (and lack thereof).

It felt like a blend of every trend we’ve been tracking: IRL events, microdramas, and highly-produced short-form series. 

Leaving we wondered—is this what the future of social shows look like? In the age of AI, where we often can’t trust what’s on our screen, is a rogue cough, camera-pan, or clap from an audience member verification of reality? You can be the judge yourself. The series will go live across socials on April 20.