433. YPulse. Attention before Intention.
October 15, 2026
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Young consumers think there are too many streaming services. They also think streaming is worth the money. They get news while scrolling social media, despite worrying about what they can trust. And they’re going to movie theaters, even as ticket prices make them more selective.
In today’s episode, MaryLeigh Bliss, chief content officer at YPulse, discusses what these apparent contradictions tell us about young audiences. Drawing on YPulse’s entertainment and news behavioral survey research, plus a preview of its moviegoing trend report the conversation explores:
What streaming fatigue means. The number of subscriptions stays fairly steady, but consumers keep changing platforms. How much frustration comes from managing access to entertainment they still value?
Where shows get discovered. Social recommendations and fan edits influence viewing choices. Platform preferences differ by gender as well as age, with implications for how marketers plan promotion.
Why the TV screen still matters. Young consumers watch YouTube on television and prefer subtitles. MaryLeigh offers some theories about how captions fit into distracted viewing.
Where consumers find news and whom they trust. News often reaches them incidentally, but established news organizations remain important sources within their feeds. The discussion also examines what role they want AI to play.
What makes a movie worth the trip. Gen Z is returning to theaters, but cost encourages more research before buying a ticket. Reviews and social recommendations help make that decision.
YPulse is the leading authority on Millennials and Gen Z: tweens, teens, college students and young adults. They provide strategic insight to companies and organizations via their subscription-based syndicated research content as well as their custom research and consulting services. Staffed with a cross-functional team of researchers, marketers, writers, and technologists, they give their clients a 360-degree view of what it’s like to be a Millennial or Gen Z today.
As Chief Content Officer, MaryLeigh Bliss oversees YPulse’s syndicated products. Her role also involves acting as a culture and youth insights expert, consulting with brands to identify actionable insights, align young consumer strategy, and layer generational and youth knowledge over data findings.
MaryLeigh has worked with a range of brands, including Facebook, Hampton, Bravo, HBO, Target, Best Buy, and Gap, and has been quoted as a youth insights authority by publications including The New York Times, Digiday, Business Insider, and Adweek. She has appeared as a Gen Z and Millennial expert on Bloomberg News, Fortune, and NPR Marketplace, and been a speaker at many off-sites and conferences. MaryLeigh’s interest in youth culture originated from her love of YA literature and pop culture anthropology, and she is continuing her passion for decoding and demystifying the next generations of consumers at YPulse.
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MaryLeigh Bliss
YPulse