Why Legacy Media Companies Are Turning to TikTok

Summary

WSJ Tech News Briefing: Why Legacy Media Companies Are Turning to TikTok
Release Date: December 19, 2024
Host: Danny Lewis, The Wall Street Journal

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Introduction

In the December 19, 2024 episode of WSJ Tech News Briefing, host Danny Lewis delves into two pivotal topics shaping the tech and media landscapes: Apple's Lockdown Mode for enhanced cybersecurity and the strategic pivot of legacy media companies towards TikTok to engage younger audiences amidst potential regulatory challenges. The episode features insights from cybersecurity expert Jackie Snow and WSJ reporter Isabella Simonetti, providing a comprehensive overview of these developments.

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Apple's Lockdown Mode: Enhancing Mobile Security

Overview of Lockdown Mode

At the outset, Danny Lewis introduces Apple's Lockdown Mode, a security feature embedded in recent iPhones designed to protect users from sophisticated cyber threats targeting individuals such as human rights activists and journalists. Jackie Snow elaborates on the accessibility and functionality of this mode.

Key Features and Benefits

• Activation and Usage: Jackie Snow emphasizes the ease of enabling Lockdown Mode via the iPhone's Settings under Privacy and Security. She advises, “People should go ahead and try it” (00:53, Lockdown Mode Details).

• Operational Impact: When activated, Lockdown Mode restricts several phone functionalities to mitigate cyberattack vectors. Jackie explains, “Most of the attachments are blocked, so you're not going to get images, videos, links” (02:19, Operational Changes). This means reduced vulnerability to malicious content delivered through messages and restricted web functionalities, ensuring a safer browsing experience.

Effectiveness Against Cyber Threats

Lockdown Mode serves as a deterrent against spyware and other malicious software by limiting potential entry points for hackers. Jackie notes, “This is just limiting the chances for them to slip on spyware onto your phone” (02:56, Protection Mechanism). However, she cautions that it is not a comprehensive solution, stating, “This is not going to protect you from everything” (02:56, Limitations), highlighting the need for users to remain vigilant against sophisticated attacks.

Comparison with Android Security Measures

The discussion transitions to Android devices, where Jackie contrasts Lockdown Mode with Google's Advanced Protection Program. She points out the challenges in achieving similar security levels on Android due to the platform's diverse hardware ecosystem: “Because Androids run on so many different types of hardware, you can't really lock down an Android device the way you can with iPhone” (03:51, Android vs. iPhone Security).

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Legacy Media Companies Embrace TikTok to Reach Younger Audiences

Strategic Shift to TikTok

Post-break, the focus shifts to Isabella Simonetti's exploration of why traditional media outlets like CNN and Fox News are increasingly leveraging TikTok to connect with younger demographics. Isabella outlines the media companies' rationale, emphasizing the need to adapt to shifting content consumption patterns among younger audiences.

Motivations for Adopting TikTok

Isabella states, “For legacy media companies, they want to meet young audiences where they are” (05:53, Meeting Audiences). With platforms like TikTok boasting a significant user base under 30, media companies aim to cultivate brand awareness and foster long-term engagement with this demographic, which is less reachable through traditional channels like linear TV.

Content Strategies and Adaptations

The episode highlights various approaches media companies employ on TikTok:

• Engaging Content Formats: Isabella describes how reporters like Trey Yingst from Fox News utilize “selfie-style videos” to deliver snippets of their reporting from the field, making news content more relatable and accessible to TikTok users (07:52, Content Adaptation).

• Building Future Loyalty: The strategy is not immediate monetization but rather building a connection that could translate into subscriptions or viewership on other platforms in the future. Isabella explains, “It's more about cultivating brand awareness for the future” (08:52, Long-Term Goals).

Navigating Potential TikTok Bans

Despite the Supreme Court’s pending decision on the TikTok ban, media companies continue investing in the platform. Isabella rationalizes this by emphasizing the adaptability of content across similar platforms, stating, “A lot of the work that these companies are doing on TikTok can be easily translated to other vertical video platforms like Instagram Reels” (07:00, Contingency Planning). This adaptability ensures that efforts on TikTok can sustain their value even if the platform faces regulatory hurdles.

Audience Reception and Preferences

Insights into user preferences reveal that younger audiences appreciate the authenticity of news on TikTok. Isabella recounts feedback from users who prefer “people's raw reactions” and find the content more “authentic or genuine” compared to traditional media outlets (09:37, User Preferences). This preference drives media companies to tailor their content to fit the unfiltered and engaging nature of TikTok.

Economic Considerations

When queried about the financial benefits, Isabella clarifies that TikTok serves more as a brand-building tool rather than a direct revenue source: “TikTok is not a big ad revenue driver for these companies. It's more about cultivating brand awareness for the future” (08:52, Economic Impact). The focus remains on establishing a presence that can lead to future monetization through other services.

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Conclusion

The episode underscores the evolving intersections between technology and media. Apple's Lockdown Mode represents a significant step in personal cybersecurity, offering users enhanced protection in an increasingly digital world. Concurrently, the strategic adoption of TikTok by legacy media companies highlights a transformative approach to audience engagement, prioritizing adaptability and future-oriented brand loyalty over immediate gains. As both cybersecurity measures and media consumption habits continue to evolve, these developments reflect broader trends shaping the tech and media industries.

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Produced by Julie Chang with supervising producer Kathryn Millsap.

Transcript

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[Danny Lewis]

It's Thursday, December 19th. I'm Danny Lewis for the Wall Street Journal. Every Apple iPhone made in the past few years includes a tool that could help prot people targeted by cybersecurity threats. It's called Lockdown Mode, and it's used by human rights activists and journalists. But it could be useful for just about anyone. Just ahead, we'll hear how the tool works and how it could help you and later. TikTok's future in the US is uncertain, but right now it still has a huge audience of young people who get their news from the social media app. And many legacy media companies are experimenting with using TikTok to reach new audiences. WSJ reporter Isabella Simonetti explains why news companies are still putting time and energy into TikTok despite its potential ban. But first, hackers looking to break into smartphones have a number of tools to do so. Photo sharing, payment applications, and logging onto unsecured WI fi networks are all ways that bad actors can exploit to install spyware. But in recent years, Apple has introduced a tool to help protect against cyber attacks by locking down some of the iPhone's most commonly used features. It's called Lockdown Mode, and Jackie Snow wrote about it for the Wall Street Journal. She joins us now. Jackie, is this something that could be useful to anyone?

[Jackie Snow]

People should go ahead and try it. It's under Privacy and Security in Settings and you can turn it on. And I actually had a cybersecurity expert tell me that if you were maybe part of a password leak or maybe some private information about you and your financial situation got shared online and you felt like your risk were heightened, that maybe is a good time to try out Apple Lockdown Mode.

[Danny Lewis]

How does it affect how the phone operates? Can you still look at the Internet or listen to your favorite podcasts, say, Tech News Briefing?

[Jackie Snow]

The ways that people maybe would experience the differences most often are in your messages. Most of the attachments are blocked, so you're not going to get images, videos, links. There's not going to be a link preview. If you want to go look at it, you're going to have to copy and paste then facetime calls from unknown numbers. Those won't be accepted. Some advanced web features are disabled, so websites might not look and work the way you're used to it. Then there's like some stuff that happens on the back end that maybe you'll be less impacted by.

[Danny Lewis]

So how does all this help protect against hackers?

[Jackie Snow]

There is a lot of ways that people are going to try to get things on your phone and that's with links, that's with areas on the web that still have some cybersecurity threats. And so this is just limiting the chances for them to slip on spyware onto your phone. And to be clear, this isn't foolproof. There are still things like if someone gets key logging software onto your phone a different way, or if someone does social engineering gets you to tell them something about your phone, that could just be a phone call, there is still risk available. This is not going to protect you from everything. This is just, as cybersecurity experts call it, reducing your attack surface. There's fewer ways to do something nefarious and get it onto your phone.

[Danny Lewis]

Gotcha. You know, we've been talking about Apple's efforts here for iPhones. Is there an equivalent for phones that are running Google's Android operating system?

[Jackie Snow]

Google has advanced protection program and that helps to lock down your devices in a way where if something changes, you're going to get a notification. Also get you to log in with something more secure like a passkey or a physical security key. But because Androids run on so many different types of hardware, you can't really lock down an Android device the way you can with iPhone, which is fully controlled by Apple.

[Danny Lewis]

We should note Google and Apple both declined to comment directly about their security efforts. All right, that was WSJ contributor Jackie Snow. Coming up, media outlets like CNN and Fox News are experimenting with new ways to bring in younger audiences through TikTok. Just ahead, we'll hear how and how a possible ban on TikTok in the US could affect their efforts. That's after the break.

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[Danny Lewis]

TikTok has exploded in popularity in recent years, especially with younger people. Some big brands have been slow to join, but now some of the biggest companies in News and their reporters are establishing their presence on the platform, just as a new federal law could effectively ban the app from operating in the US in just a matter of weeks. WSJ reporter Isabella Simonetti wrote about this, and she joins us now. Isabella, why are some traditional news publishers only now turning to TikTok?

[Isabella Simonetti]

It depends on the publisher. Some have been on TikTok for quite a while. The Washington Post has been on TikTok since 2019. But the reality is for legacy media companies, they want to meet young audiences where they are. And if you look at fo Fox or MSNBC, the median age of their viewer is 69 or 70. And so young people, you're not going to necessarily reach them by doing what you're doing on linear television or even on your digital news website. And young people are on TikTok. We have research from Pew that shows that 39% of adults under 30 say they get their news on TikTok. So publishers and TV and media companies want to make a splash on a platform like TikTok so that they can cultivate brand awareness with a younger generation.

[Danny Lewis]

And yesterday the Supreme Court said it would decide the constitutionality of the TikTok ban, which is set to take effect January 19. So why are media companies still investing time and effort in a platform with an uncertain future?

[Isabella Simonetti]

It's about the format more than it's about the platform. A lot of the work that these companies are doing on TikTok can be easily translated to other vertical video platforms like Instagram Reels. And TikTok right now is so huge. And even if a 25 year old or a 26 year old sees a Fox News TikTok or an MSNBC TikTok, and then TikTok is banned, they might then look to follow them on another platform or keep up with their work elsewhere. So it's about trying to grasp viewers where they are now more than it is thinking years and years ahead about the strategy because no one knows what the future of TikTok is going to be.

[Danny Lewis]

How are legacy media companies and the journalists who work for them using the platform? Like how is it changing their stories or, you know, how they're presenting it?

[Isabella Simonetti]

There are a number of different approaches to how media companies are translating their work to TikTok. If we look at Trey Yingst, Fox News's chief foreign correspondent, he does these kind of selfie style videos while he's reporting from war zones, kind of walking viewers through what's going on. And he said to me when I interviewed him that his goal is really just to give them a tidbit of his reporting so that they'll want to come back for more and tune into the coverage live on Fox. It's about giving young people a taste of what kind of reporting these organizations have to offer so that down the road they might want to pay for a subscription service or a streaming service or follow the news on live tv.

[Danny Lewis]

We should note that Fox News parent Fox Corp. And the Wall Street Journal's parent company, News Corp. Share common ownership Isabella Are these companies making money off of the TikTok posts?

[Isabella Simonetti]

My understanding is that TikTok is not a big ad revenue driver for these companies. It's more about cultivating brand awareness for the future. So if I'm 25 and I'm seeing a Washington Post TikTok and I don't want to pay for a subscription right now, but five years from now I'm making more money and I decide I want to pay for a subscription, I might remember that I saw a TikTok from the Washington Post and decide to pay for their services.

[Danny Lewis]

What do TikTok users, especially the younger ones, say about seeing news on this social media app versus going to more traditional media like TV, newspapers or, you know, podcasts?

[Isabella Simonetti]

I talked to one TikTok user who said that she loves to get news on TikTok because she feels like seeing people's raw reactions, even consumers and not professional reporters, is more authentic or genuine than what she sees if she turns on CNN or Fox. So young people like the authenticity and unfiltered n of platforms like TikTok, and that's why they turn to them versus, you know, TV news or reported work.

[Danny Lewis]

Online reporter Isabella Simonetti covers the business of television and streaming for the Wall Street Journal. And that's it for Tech News Briefing. Today's show was produced by Julie Chang with supervising producer Kathryn Millsap. I'm Danny Lewis for the Wall Street Journal. We'll be back this afternoon with TNB Tech Minute. Thanks for listening.

[Amazon Representative]

Amazon Q Business is the new generative AI Assistant from aws because many tasks can make business slow, as if wading through mud help. Luckily, there's a faster, easier, less messy choice. Amazon Q can securely understand your business data and use that knowledge to streamline tasks. Now you can summarize quarterly results or do complex analysis in no time. Q Got this? Learn what Amazon Q Business can do for [e-mail] learnmore.