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Hearst Magazines to launch two new YouTube channels
MUMBAI: Hearst Magazines in the US is bringing two new channels to YouTube as part of the online video social network‘s new original channel‘s initiative.
The programming is being created in conjunction with the experts from Car and Driver, Road and Track, and Popular Mechanics for the Automotive channel and Cosmopolitan, Harper‘s Bazaar, Marie Claire, Seventeen, and Realbeauty.com for the Fashion and Beauty channel. Both channels will launch next year.
Hearst Magazines EVP, GM John Loughlin said, “This new relationship with YouTube provides a great opportunity for us to expose our brands in video form to an exponentially larger audience. We‘ve been creating hundreds of hours of content each year, which will be included as part of these channels and allows us to achieve larger scale, better monetization and the potential to launch new brands out of this exciting platform.”
Hearst adds that it has a wealth of production capabilities, including a digital video studio and production facility; a stake in Mark Burnett Productions; and relationships with other production companies.
The company‘s in-house video team has produced a library of over 12,000 videos across its brands and nearly 200 hours of monthly video programming that is used on the company‘s websites and tablet applications. Hearst will develop original content specifically for this platform, as well as use some of its existing video.
Car and Driver Television: Driven to Extremes will feature programming that includes automotive-related competitions, car makeovers and a show that mixes the week‘s biggest car news with a dose of humor.
The shows on Fashion & Beauty: Style on Location will focus on global street style, the best in beauty and an irreverent look at the latest fashion headlines.
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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.
