Social Media Buzz Weekly: Roundup of Social Media Updates
- ClickInsights
- 2 days ago
- 7 min read
Welcome to Social Media Buzz Weekly, your weekly bulletin of the latest social media updates. With the social media landscape evolving with each passing day, it can be challenging to keep a tab on the rapid developments. Well, not anymore, as we have taken it upon ourselves to keep you abreast of every happening in the social media space.
So, without any further ado, let’s look at some of the most significant developments from the last week in the world of social media.
1. Meta Updates Ad Metrics To Align With Other Platforms
Meta has informed advertisers that it is simplifying its link clicks metric in order to more accurately represent the common understanding of what this means. Meta said this will ensure that its link click metrics are more in line with other platforms.
Meta will also continue to provide expanded ad engagement metrics in its “Engaged View” category, which is also getting a naming update. Moreover, Meta is updating the definition for an engaged view for a video ad from 10 seconds to 5 seconds. Meta said that shortening the window on this metric will provide a more accurate indicator of an engaged view, which will ultimately help improve advertiser performance.
2. Meta Tests Shopping AI Chatbot in US
Meta is reportedly testing a new shopping research feature within Meta AI, which would provide carousels of recommended products within shopping-related queries.
Meta has committed to spending $600 billion on the U.S.-based AI infrastructure developments over the next three years. With that level of investment, Meta also needs to map a pathway to profit. Ads in chatbots seem like a logical choice, though they could risk eroding trust in AI answers, because the responses could be viewed as being skewed towards paying ad partners.
3. Almost Half of US Consumers Use Tiktok as a Search Engine
TikTok has solidified its role as a legitimate search engine for many Americans, with 49% of US consumers reporting that they used TikTok as a platform for search queries in 2026 – up 19.5% from 41% in 2024, according to Adobe Express’s latest survey of 807 consumers and 200 small business owners conducted in January–February 2026.
The shift is most pronounced among younger users. 25% of Gen Z consumers found TikTok effective for finding information, compared to 17% of millennials, 12% of Gen X, and just 5% of baby boomers. Gen Z also showed strong preference for Reddit as a search tool (38%) and remained the most likely to favor Google overall (89%). However, TikTok’s appeal over Google has declined slightly among Gen Z, dropping from 8% in 2024 to 4% in 2026.
4. TikTok Rules Out Using End-to-End Message Encryption
TikTok won’t implement end-to-end encryption within its messaging service due to the limits that E2E would place on criminal investigations, the platform said in a recent security briefing with the BBC in London.
TikTok said that message encryption prevents police and safety teams from being able to investigate direct messages. TikTok has long been under scrutiny over its connection to China’s government, as well as the potential that the app could be used as a vector to gather information on users.
5. TikTok Ad Campaigns Drive Movie Ticket Purchases
TikTok published new data on the effectiveness of TikTok ads in promoting film releases and how TikTok’s cultural influence drives box office sales.
The report, created in collaboration with TikTok partner Samba, used Samba’s Box Office Lift measurement methodology to connect TikTok promotions to purchase activity, and examined how TikTok promotions directly impact ticket sales. The report assessed the performance of 38 theatrical campaigns in the U.S. from early 2023 through mid-2025 and showed that TikTok ads for films drove strong sales lift and revenue growth.
6. Instagram Introduces Thumbnail Post Editing for Grids
Instagram has launched the next stage of its profile grid customization update, with users now able to edit thumbnail images of their posted content as it has displayed in their profile. Social media users will also be able to control the presentation thumbnail content and customize the display of images and clips.
Instagram has been developing this option for some time, sharing an initial preview of the functionality in January 2025. The update also aligns with the platform’s switch to larger thumbnail images, which are more aligned with the full-screen Reels display. Instagram is still developing the option to rearrange profile grids and switch around the content presentation.
7. Instagram Opens Up Content Scheduling to All Users
Instagram has made its creator tools available to all public accounts in the app, giving more users more ways to create and manage their Instagram presence.
Instagram has developed a range of creator-aligned tools that, until now, have only been available to those who switch over to Professional Mode in the app. These tools were specifically designed to help creators make the most of their IG efforts. But now, some of the most used creator elements will be available to all users, including the insights dashboard, which displays how content is performing; content scheduling; and access to the app’s trending audio tools.
8. Snapchat Research Provides Insight for Movie Marketing
Snapchat has published a report that explored how moviegoers use the app to learn about new releases and engage with film-related content.
The research could provide valuable guidance for entertainment marketers as to how Snapchat can play a role in boosting promotions. The data, compiled by Omnicom Media and Ipsos, is based on a survey of more than 1,188 U.S. moviegoers aged 13 to 44 who use social media daily. It looked into how they found movies to watch, how they discussed them online and what impact that had on overall film engagement.
9. X Tests Experimental Topic Feed Filter
X has launched a public test of a new feed filter option, which will enable X users to get a more focused stream of content around chosen topics.
The topic filter lets X users put more emphasis on trending news stories, alongside popular topic categories. That will then guide X’s algorithm to emphasize chosen focus topics in the main For You feed. X’s head of product Nikitia Bier said that the feature is designed to help users stay on top of the latest news around rapidly evolving world events. Bier first announced that users in the U.S. and Canada on iOS would be able to access the new feed filter, but later said the tool would be temporarily available to users in Egypt, Iran, Israel, Saudi Arabia, Turkey, Iraq, Yemen, Syria, Jordan, UAE, Lebanon, Oman, Kuwait, Qatar, Bahrain and Cyprus.
10. X Launches Paid Partnership Labels for Sponsored Content
X has launched its paid partnership tagging option over the weekend. The new feature will provide another transparency measure for brand partnerships in the app, and will also bring X more in line with other social apps, as well as with evolving regulations around paid content disclosure.
Creators will now be able to indicate when they’re sharing sponsored content or engaging branded partnerships by activating the paid partnership label via a new flag icon within the composer. That will then bring up a simple toggle to switch on the paid partnership tag, adding a small indicator below the preview image in-stream.X creators will also be able to add the paid partnership tag after posting, by going into the three dots menu on a post and selecting “Add content disclosure” from the list.
11. X Invites Users to Beta Test X Chat App
X launched a live test of its upcoming X Chat app, which will separate its DM element into a separate platform, though it will still be linked back to users’ X accounts.
In this sense, it’s a lot like Meta’s Messenger, providing a separate tool for private chats while also aligning with the main app. The new X Chat interface, which is still in early testing, will give users access to X chats, as well as other unique messaging features to enhance the experience. X designer Michael Boswell announced the beta test launch of the app, and said it was open to the first 1,000 users who signed up. Boswell later expanded the test to the first 5,000 users, with all testing slots quickly taken by X users.
12. X to Take Action Against AI Deepfakes of the Iran War
X will temporarily bar creators from monetizing their content through its Creator Revenue Sharing program if they share AI-generated videos of an armed conflict without clearly disclosing that it was made with AI.
The move came three days after the U.S. and Israel launched strikes against Iran, sparking a chain of violent reactions. Creators who post AI-made videos of armed conflict without adequate disclosure will be suspended from Creator Revenue Sharing for 90 days. Additional violations will lead to permanent suspension from the program. X will be able to check whether videos are AI-generated using available metadata imbued by AI systems in combination with Community Notes, X’s crowd-sourced fact-checking tool.
13. X Gets Rid of Its Popular Night Mode In-App Setting
Some X users have noted that the “night mode” option has been removed from the app settings as of the latest update, and is seemingly no longer available to users.
Twitter originally added its night mode option (which is more commonly known as “dark mode” in other apps) in 2016. The feature provided a way to protect users from the impacts of blue light exposure, while also giving the app a cool new look, which made it a popular option. But now, the night mode setting is gone.
Wrapping Up
And that was a wrap of this week’s Social Media Buzz. We’ll be back next week with more news and updates for you from the social media world. Till then, stay tuned!
If you want to read more on the latest developments taking place in the social media space, take a look at ClickInsights’ Social Media Buzz, wherein we bring to you monthly reports on everything going on in social media, ranging from platform updates to policy changes that influence the way we market.
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