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A study of children's video consumption habits showed that the youngest generation prefers to use YouTube far more than other forms of media, including social sites.The survey of thousands of children ages 2-12, also known as Generation Alpha, asked about their daily media consumption. Surprisingly, the survey showed that youngsters are generally shifting away from social media platforms and focusing purely on video content.When asked how they had been consuming content recently, 81% of respondents said they had used YouTube, with the second highest response being subscription video-on-demand at 62%.Mobile games was the third-highest answer, with 55% of those surveyed saying they had played one of the games recently.'Hollywood propaganda is like snail mail, social and user-generated content is like e-mail.'These numbers were significantly higher than those of a traditional social media platform. Facebook, Instagram, and Snapchat bottomed out the list of ways Gen Alpha is consuming video.However, the data — compiled by Giraffe Insights, Precise TV, and Variety — showed that children in that age group are increasingly consuming more content.Of 3,000 respondents, 9% more reported recently using YouTube in 2024 compared to 2023.TikTok had the highest jump year-over-year, with an 11-point increase from 33% to 44%.Snapchat was the only listed medium with a decrease in usage (2%); however, the "other" category also saw a drop (2%)."User-generated content is the most weaponized, beefed up propaganda in existence right now, so it's no surprise that it's the most compelling for the youngest generation," filmmaker Cody Clarke told Blaze News."Everything else entertainment-wise, while still propagandic, is anemic by comparison, or dinosaur-esque. Hollywood propaganda is like snail mail, social and user-generated content is like e-mail," Clarke continued.The data reflects that even streaming platforms are more popular among the youth than typical social media; 50% of the respondents reported watching the popular video game streaming site Twitch for between two and three hours per day, the highest response by far for that category.Clarke pointed out that while the sheer amount of video consumption among children is alarming, it is certainly a net positive that the perils of social media are being "instinctively" avoided."The fact that these kids are instinctively avoiding the machine in its most obvious forms says something.""We still need to educate young minds to the fact that what they are watching on social media is often a facsimile of individuality, but the fact that they are even instinctively seeking out human shared experience is a win, just a slightly delayed one," he added.Like Blaze News? Bypass the censors, sign up for our newsletters, and get stories like this direct to your inbox. Sign up here!

I was not a fan of LeBron James being selected as flag bearer for Team USA at the Paris Olympics. It bothered me for reasons beyond James’ history of kneeling during the national anthem in support of George Floyd and other career criminals who lost their lives resisting arrest. I was bothered because I knew it would inevitably lead to someone comparing James to Muhammad Ali, who famously lit the torch at the 1996 Atlanta Olympic Games. Off the court, James is a complete and total fraud. Nothing could be more obvious. Sure enough, my old friend Dan Le Batard stepped up and made the ridiculous comparison. On his popular podcast, the former ESPN and Miami Herald journalist called James “today’s Muhammad Ali.” That’s a sad statement about “today” far more than it is praise of James. King James is not Muhammad Ali. I’ll explain after I share a bit of context. A decade ago, as the editor in chief of ESPN’s the Undefeated, I devised a plan to examine LeBron James’ pursuit of a legacy that rivaled Muhammad Ali’s. I surmised that in the aftermath of LeBron’s four-year, two-championship stint in Miami that James and Nike had changed their targets. They would no longer position James as the successor to Air Jordan’s throne. To sell sneakers at Michael Jordan’s level, LeBron needed a new historical narrative. He pivoted to Muhammad Ali, the man regarded as “The Greatest” despite suffering five losses in the boxing ring. Ali’s courage and standing outside the ring rendered his losses to Joe Frazier, Ken Norton, Leon Spinks, Larry Holmes, and Trevor Berbick meaningless.If LeBron could strengthen his profile as an activist, he could erase the stench of his poorly executed 2010 exit from Cleveland and the subsequent 2011 NBA Finals meltdown against the Dallas Mavericks. “The Decision” — James’ much-hyped and televised choice to take “his talents to South Beach” — and his embarrassing performance against Dirk Nowitzki and the Mavs did severe damage to James’ brand. They made it impossible for the chosen one to rival Jordan as a competitor, performer, or sneaker pitchman.Rather than accept his plight, James and Nike chose to scale a larger mountain: Muhammad Ali. The pivot began in 2011, when James and Nike began formulating plans for the “I Promise School” in Akron, a school for disadvantaged kids with unstable home environments. James’ foundation financed a small percentage of the school while receiving a much larger percentage of the credit for launching it. In early 2012, James and Nike unveiled the second step in LeBron’s rebranding. James dipped his toe into activism, leading his Miami Heat teammates into donning hoodies in support of Trayvon Martin, the black Florida teen who was shot and killed after pounding George Zimmerman’s head into the ground.By 2017, James was a full-blown social justice warrior. He claimed that vandals spray-painted the N-word on the back gate of his $20 million mansion in Brentwood, California. He provided no proof. His servants removed the graffiti before police could investigate, before James could return to California and see it for himself. James used the alleged incident to compare himself to the mother of Emmett Till, the 14-year-old boy who was brutally murdered in Mississippi in 1955. James’ servants removed the alleged graffiti within hours. Emmett Till’s mother lost her teenage son. It’s difficult for me to follow the analogy. It’s equally difficult for me to believe that anyone in 2024 thinks LeBron James is the modern-day Muhammad Ali. He’s not. Off the court, James is a complete and total fraud. Nothing could be more obvious. James is a great basketball player. He’s one of the five or six best players of all time. I rank him below Jordan, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, Magic Johnson, and Larry Bird. I never saw Bill Russell play, but I’m open to the possibility that Russell was better than James. As it relates to athletes and off-the-field importance, James isn’t on the same planet as Ali, Jim Brown, Arthur Ashe, Bill Bradley, Jack Kemp, or Joe Louis. James is the antithesis of Ali. As an activist, James faces zero resistance. He’s never been challenged to defend his unsophisticated political opinions against a journalistic adversary. Ali engaged with and confronted his adversaries on college campuses, during televised interviews, and even in his relationship with Howard Cosell.James ducks resistance. He and Klutch Sports represent and finance members of the media who defend James at every turn. Ali was connected to a religious sect, the Nation of Islam, and was counseled by Malcolm X and Elijah Muhammad. James has no discernible religious faith or affiliation. He’s counseled by a cadre of agents and handlers. Ali competed in the sport that is the ultimate test of masculinity. James has popularized flopping in a sport that has been stripped of its masculinity. Ali risked imprisonment over his religious convictions when he refused induction into the military draft. James has risked nothing. James is an inauthentic brand, a man who does the bidding of a global apparel company. Ali epitomized authenticity, a man who believed his actions would truly inspire and uplift black Americans.In 1996, when Ali lit the Olympic torch in Atlanta, it symbolized the end of Ali’s feud with America. It was a negotiated peace settlement between adversaries. LeBron James carrying the Team USA flag at this year’s Olympics symbolized that sellouts rule in a country run by sellouts.

FBI Deputy Director Paul Abbate testified before Congress on Tuesday about the possible motivation of the Trump rally shooter, but the CEO of Gab immediately contradicted his claim. Abbate testified that Thomas Matthew Crooks had posted hundreds of messages to social media, including some that expressed anti-Semitic and anti-immigration sentiments. 'To the best of Gab's knowledge, as of 2021, Crooks was a pro-lockdown, pro-immigration, left-wing Joe Biden supporter.'“Some of these comments, if ultimately attributable to the shooter, appear to reflect antisemitic and anti-immigration themes, to espouse political violence, and are described as extreme in nature,” said Abbate. The posts were reportedly published between 2019 and 2020. “While the investigative team is still working to verify this account to determine if it did in fact belong to the shooter, we believe it important to share and note it today, particularly given the general absence of other information to date from social media and other sources of information that reflect on the shooter’s potential motive and mindset,” Abbate added. Andrew Torba, the CEO of the Gab social media platform, then said that he had received a request from the FBI about posts that might be attributed to Crooks but added that they appeared to show motivation opposite to Abbate's testimony. "This is not consistent with Gab's understanding of the shooter's motives based on an Emergency Disclosure Request ('EDR') we received from the FBI last week for the Gab account 'EpicMicrowave' which, based on the content of that EDR, the FBI appeared to think belonged to Thomas Crooks," said Torba from his official social media account. He went on to say the company doesn't usually confirm law enforcement communications, but it made an exception because of the "overwhelming public interest" in this case. "The story is this: the account for which data was requested was, UNEQUIVOCALLY, pro-Biden and in particular pro-Biden's immigration policy," said Torba. "To the best of Gab's knowledge, as of 2021, Crooks was a pro-lockdown, pro-immigration, left-wing Joe Biden supporter."Torba also posted a copy of the request from the FBI but blocked out some information out of courtesy to the agency's investigation. Abbate was challenged in his testimony by Republican Sen. Marsha Blackburn of Tennessee. "We understand that the Gab account is pro-immigration, pro-lockdown, leftist views. Is that accurate?" she asked. "I haven't seen it directly, but I believe, from what I've been told, that is accurate, with the Gab account," Abbate responded. "We're still working to verify that that's his account. But it does have differing points of view, it would appear." Abbate's testimony was published to YouTube. Like Blaze News? Bypass the censors, sign up for our newsletters, and get stories like this direct to your inbox. Sign up here!

House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) used a viral moment from last month's presidential debate to respond to President Joe Biden's eyebrow-raising comment about him.On Monday, Biden released his plan to reform the Supreme Court, a three-item proposal that aligns with progressive demands (sans court-packing). 'I really don't know what he said at the end of that sentence. I don't think he knows what he said, either.'But that plan will never see daylight in the halls of Congress, Johnson responded, describing the proposal as "dead on arrival in the House.""President Biden’s proposal to radically overhaul the U.S. Supreme Court would tilt the balance of power and erode not only the rule of law, but the American people’s faith in our system of justice," Johnson said. "This proposal is the logical conclusion to the Biden-Harris Administration and Congressional Democrats’ ongoing efforts to delegitimize the Supreme Court."The Republican leader pointed out, "It is telling that Democrats want to change the system that has guided our nation since its founding simply because they disagree with some of the Court’s recent decisions."Later in the day, a reporter asked President Biden to respond to Johnson's statement."I think that’s what he is," Biden said."That he is?" the reporter followed up."That he is dead on arrival," Biden clarified. — (@) The comment immediately triggered confusion among reporters and political commentators alike because of the recent assassination attempt on Donald Trump and the subsequent campaign to abstain from using threatening political rhetoric.In that regard, Speaker Johnson found the perfect way to respond, using a viral moment from the presidential debate between Biden and Trump last month."I really don't know what he said at the end of that sentence. I don't think he knows what he said, either," Trump quipped at the debate. — (@) Meanwhile, Biden tried to clarify his remarks later in the day."I think his thinking is dead on arrival," Biden said.The truth is, however, Johnson's thinking will almost certainly prevail. That's because Biden's proposal would require the movement of the political heaven and earth to pass.Biden's first two proposals — a "No One Is Above the Law" constitutional amendment and term limits for Supreme Court justices — would both have to go through the difficult constitutional amending process, which requires approval from two-thirds of Congress and ratification from three-fourths of all states.The third proposal — a new ethics code for Supreme Court justices — is the least problematic, but the high court already self-enforces an ethics code.Like Blaze News? Bypass the censors, sign up for our newsletters, and get stories like this direct to your inbox. Sign up here!

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