💎Hollywood mines Reddit for content ideas
+ #MomStack (yep you heard it here first) is here and why people aren’t just following influencers anymore, they’re subscribing to taste. Enter: curators
💎cultural gems💎
The moments and media that we can’t stop talking about this week…
🎥 You may have noticed some creators mining Reddit for content. That includes Sydney Sweeney, who is turning an English teacher’s short story [posted to the platform 4 years ago] into a movie.
⚖️ Shari Franke, daughter of former Utah Mommy blogger Ruby Franke who is now imprisoned for child abuse, is working with state leaders to restore rights to family vlogger children.
⚽️ The number of bars in the US dedicated to showing women’s sports is expected to quadruple this year. In case you need even more reasons to join the women’s sports conversation, check out our breakdown here.
🥖 In the vain of Nara Smith and Ballerina Farm, Meghan, Duchess of Sussex, is embracing old-fashioned domestic arts in her Netflix show.
📧 Substack started as just another newsletter platform. Now, its empowering creators to build media empires. But there are still challenges with the 💰paid💰 of it all, as our founder
points out [note: if you have thoughts or solutions, drop into the comments!]:🎵 It can be frustrating feeling like your life is controlled by algorithms, but in the case of Spotify’s recommendations, sometimes they’re too good to give up.
👔 Are you a 9-to-5er looking for a side hustle? Just post what you’re wearing to the office.
🥤A juice bar in Philadelphia was on the verge of closing when an influencer stepped in, made a video, and helped raise $70,000 in two days. MTD client GoFundMe shared this video from the owner about what it meant to have Bran Flakes’ support.
This story is a reminder of the power of impact creators, which we learned so much about when we collaborated with GoFundMe on the Social State of Giving report.
Ones to Watch: Substack
🤩 Next up in Ones to Watch: Substack [part of our long-running series known for discovering talent before they hit the big time]. Our expertise? Curating lists of emerging creators ahead of the curve, giving marketers and fellow creators an inside look before they really take off. Today's feature:
Ilana Torbiner – Writer, Curator, Connector
If you’ve ever opened a newsletter and thought, “Oh, she really gets it,” there’s a good chance you were reading
. Her Substack, Welcome Inside My Mind, feels like stepping into someone’s notes app, open tabs, and screenshot folder all at once. Each week, Ilana delivers a curated rundown of what she’s been thinking about, googling, and unpacking, whether it’s brand strategy, cultural shifts, or why a certain tweet made her spiral [in the best way].📌 What makes her different? While plenty of newsletters recycle what’s trending, Ilana dissects it [and then goes a layer deeper]. She’s not trying to be the loudest voice in the room. Instead, she’s asking better questions, spotlighting under-the-radar trends, and blending industry insight with just enough vulnerability to feel like you’re chatting with a friend who also happens to have impeccable taste.
💬 Her Substack Chat is full of real conversations [not just hot takes], and she’s one of the few creators consistently using Notes in a way that adds value instead of noise. Her latest piece, The Versatility of a Blue Button Down, helps us channel our inner Chessy [from The Parent Trap ofc] and reminds us why Ilana is our fashion voice of reason.
🧠 Ilana’s writing sits in that rare sweet spot between culture writing and brand thinking, smart without being preachy, stylish without being performative. Think
meets , but with a slightly more strategic lens and fewer caps lock moments. She brings the same sharp eye for fashion, media, and internet culture, but layers in a strategic POV that feels especially valuable for marketers, founders, and creators trying to understand why certain narratives stick. Her take on the comeback of leather had us questioning everything we knew about statement pieces.📈 If you're a brand strategist, media nerd, or pop culture junkie, Ilana’s writing will make you feel both seen and smarter. You’ll leave every post with 3 new tabs open—whether it’s a podcast rec, niche essay, or chaotic screenshot that makes you go “Wait what?” It’s not just about having taste, it’s about understanding the systems that shape it. Ilana offers that, which makes her work not just entertaining to read, but genuinely useful for anyone building in public.
Know a standout Substacker? We’re not looking at follower counts or time on the platform—we want to highlight what makes them unique. Whether it’s their niche, community engagement, or the way they use Notes, we want to hear about them! DM us or email hello@mtdecoagency.com to nominate someone for a feature. We want to connect with standout talent and grow our community! 🤝 🙌
If you’re not curating, you could be missing out…
Premium subscribers get the inside track on what’s shaping the next wave of content and culture. This week, we’re diving into two shifts that are changing the way creators build and keep audiences: 1. Why niche communities are making a strong comeback, with what we are calling the #MomStack movement at the center of the conversation and 2. How curators are becoming some of the most trusted voices online, often outranking traditional creators.
By the time it hits the For You Page, it’s already old news. #ForYou is here to help you get ahead of the scroll, the strategy decks, and the think pieces, before it’s too cringe to join in. ⬇️