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Social media to exert growing influence on TV viewing in the US
MUMBAI: Consumers‘ interaction with social media in relation to their television viewing in the US is relatively modest compared to other forms of communication and lags behind other online media, TV promotions and, especially, offline communication, according to a new study. Only 12 per cent of respondents use social media one or more times per day concerning TV.
However, the number jumps to 37 per cent using social media one or more times per week-suggesting growth potential for social media as an influence on TV viewing. Half of these respondents report viewing TV concurrently with using social media.
The research also identified several groups who are highly connected to social media and television, and who represent an important opportunity for marketers. These are among numerous findings from a multi-pronged study, entitled ‘Talking Social TV, to help determine how social media interaction impacts television viewing‘. The research was spearheaded by the Social Media Committee of the Council for Research Excellence (CRE), and included a quantitative study by the Keller Fay Group, an ethnographic study by Nielsen Life360, and social media analyses by NM Incite and Bluefin Labs.
An academic team including Peter Fader of The Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania, Mitch Lovett of the Simon School of Business at the University of Rochester, and Renana Peres of The Hebrew University of Jerusalem was engaged to undertake statistical modeling.
Among the study‘s many findings:
In terms of social-media influence, only 1.5 per cent of study respondents report being drawn to existing TV shows by social media -but that number increases to six per cent when asked about new shows; Social media use varies by genre; Sci-Fi, Sports and Talk/News show strong interaction overall, both while people are watching and while they are not watching.
Reality programming‘s interaction is much stronger while People are watching, less so before or after the programme. Comedy follows an opposite pattern, with less interaction during the programme and more interaction in reaction to the programme;
“Super Connectors”, defined as those most actively involved in social media usage related to TV viewing, are 12 per cent of the public, and tend to be younger and are more likely female. Other groups also are active, although Super Connectors are not well represented among adults over 45 years of age
“Super Connectors” are far more likely to be involved with all means of communication about television (online, marketing and word of mouth). They were two-to-three times as likely to interact with social media related to television as the general population.
“Hispanics” are more involved with social media than the general population, especially while watching television. However, they did not approach the level of interaction of the Super Connectors. While watching, Hispanics are 50 per cent more likely to interact with social media related to television, and to interact with most television genres, led by sports programming
Mobile device ownership (smartphones and tablets) increases social media interaction; in on-demand and online watching occasions, social media played a role twice as often;
People use social media to discuss TV shows even when others are watching with them.
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With 57 per cent single new users, Ashley Madison rebrands as discreet dating platform
Platform says majority of new members now identify as single
INDIA: Ashley Madison is shedding the “married-dating” label that defined it for two decades, repositioning itself as a platform for discreet dating in what it calls the post-social media age.
The rebrand, unveiled in India on 27 February, 2026, marks a structural shift in business model and identity. Once synonymous with married dating, the company now describes itself as the “premier destination for discreet dating” under a new tagline: Where Desire Meets Discretion.
The pivot is data-driven. Internal figures show that 57 per cent of global sign-ups between 1 January and 31 December, 2025 identified as single: a notable departure from the platform’s married core. The company argues that its community has already evolved beyond its original positioning.
“In an age where our lives have been constantly put on public display, privacy has become the new luxury,” said Ashley Madison chief strategy officer Paul Keable. He framed the platform’s offering as “ethical discretion” for singles, separated, divorced and non-monogamous users seeking private connections.
The shift also taps into wider digital fatigue. A global survey conducted by YouGov for Ashley Madison, covering 13,071 adults across Australia, Brazil, Canada, Germany, India, Italy, Mexico, Spain, Switzerland, the UK and the US, found mounting discomfort with hyper-public online lives.
Among dating app users, 30 per cent cited constant swiping and messaging as a source of fatigue, while 24 per cent pointed to pressure to curate public-facing profiles and early personal disclosure. Some 27 per cent said fears of screenshots or information being shared contributed to exhaustion; an equal share cited unwanted attention.
The retreat from oversharing appears broader. According to the survey, 46 per cent of adults actively try to keep most aspects of their life private online. Only 8 per cent feel comfortable sharing most aspects publicly, while 35 per cent say they are becoming more selective about what they disclose.
Ashley Madison is betting that this cultural recalibration towards controlled visibility can be monetised. By doubling down on privacy infrastructure and reframing itself around discretion rather than infidelity, the company is attempting to convert reputational baggage into a premium proposition.
