Image: Bryce Durbin
"Erin McGoff has 3 million followers on social media, but with the money she gets from Instagram and TikTok, she wouldn’t be able to pay for the plate of mozzarella sticks we’re sharing in a Baltimore bar.
“On Instagram, I’ll have a video hit 900,000 views and make six dollars,” McGoff said. “It’s insulting.”
Like most content creators, McGoff makes her living from brand deals, sponsorships and subscription products, rather than from the platforms themselves. But that reality is emblematic of the conundrum creators find themselves in: They’re propelling social platforms to new heights, but those same platforms can betray them at any second with one small algorithm change or unfounded suspension."
