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Welcome back to Insider Pix, where we uncover what entertainment and culture insiders are watching, reaching, and listening to! Next up:
Tara Walpert Levy
Tara Walpert Levy has built her career where media, culture, and technology collide. She spent fifteen years at Google and YouTube, most recently running YouTube’s Americas business. Her path traces the rewiring of media itself: from traditional TV to digital media to shaping the creator economy. See what she thinks is hot now!
Tara’s 5 Picks
Best TV show you've watched recently?
Nobody Wants This. The rare romantic comedy that respects both characters. Got through both seasons faster than I’d like to admit. Michelle Khare’s Challenge Accepted is also the most ambitious show I’ve seen recently, which makes it fun.
A 5-star-worthy book you'd recommend to anyone?
For sheer entertainment, The Rose Code by Kate Quinn. Three women cracking codes at Bletchley Park in WWII. I read it on a train and almost missed my connection.
A hidden gem you wish more people knew about?
Ground News. It tracks the political bias of every story you read and shows you what you're missing. Has quietly improved my media diet and rounded out my perspective.
Best movie you've watched recently?
Good Will Hunting. I just rewatched it with my teens and the story absolutely holds up. The math notwithstanding, the parts about figuring out what you actually want from your life are timeless.
Your go-to weekly podcast?
Pix: What's your favorite YouTube rabbit hole to fall down?
TWL: Late night cuts and stand-up. Currently obsessed with Josh Johnson for his rare combination of wit and calm. He has a rare ability to sound observant instead of performative, which can be surprisingly uncommon online.
Pix: After years of working across media and technology, what's one change in how people watch video that surprises you most?
TWL: How fast YouTube became the #1 platform on the TV screen. We went from "second screen on the phone" to "first screen in the living room" in just a few years. Even inside the company, the speed of that shift surprised people, and so did the range of content people are watching that way, including Shorts. The implications for how to think about content and distribution are still working their way through the Hollywood ecosystem.
Pix: What's something about where YouTube is headed that you're especially excited about right now?
TWL: How fast the best creators are becoming full fledged studios and also multi-platform brands and businesses. In fifteen years, Dude Perfect has scaled from five guys doing trick shots into a full media operation and touring business. Cleo Abram is doing better journalism than most legacy outlets. Brittany Broski and Sean Evans are courting Emmy nominations. The economic upside and creative ownership creators have now is something legacy talent never had access to. The next decade of media and consumer products is being built around creators as businesses, not just talent.