Benedict Townsend

And just like that, Vine was dead. Not with a bang, but with an email. There we go. Vine's dead. That's it. Vine's done. But you know what's not done? This story. We've got some more to dig into, Mary. And a few more people we need to talk to.

And just like that, Vine was dead. Not with a bang, but with an email. There we go. Vine's dead. That's it. Vine's done. But you know what's not done? This story. We've got some more to dig into, Mary. And a few more people we need to talk to.

In a way, without being too cheesy, Vine dying is almost the beginning of the story. All the way back in episode one, I promised that if you want to understand TikTok and the tech world of today, you need to understand the story of Vine.

In a way, without being too cheesy, Vine dying is almost the beginning of the story. All the way back in episode one, I promised that if you want to understand TikTok and the tech world of today, you need to understand the story of Vine.

I did promise that. And I like to keep my promises. And this is the point in this upcoming final episode. This is the point where we will make that connection between how this little six second app got us to the world that we're in now. On the final episode, the autopsy, the funeral, and the lasting legacy of Vine.

I did promise that. And I like to keep my promises. And this is the point in this upcoming final episode. This is the point where we will make that connection between how this little six second app got us to the world that we're in now. On the final episode, the autopsy, the funeral, and the lasting legacy of Vine.

You can listen to Vine's 6 Seconds That Changed the World on Global Player. Download it from the App Store or go to globalplayer.com. Vine Six Seconds That Changed the World is a Global Original podcast, created and hosted by me, Benedict Townsend, and produced by my co-creator, Mary Goodheart.

You can listen to Vine's 6 Seconds That Changed the World on Global Player. Download it from the App Store or go to globalplayer.com. Vine Six Seconds That Changed the World is a Global Original podcast, created and hosted by me, Benedict Townsend, and produced by my co-creator, Mary Goodheart.

Narrative and creative by producer Kevya Cardoso, score and sound design by Patrick Lee, and mix by Chris James. Sophie Snelling is the executive producer, Al Riddell is head of factual podcasts, and Vicky Etchells is director of podcasts at Global. This is a Global Player Original Podcast.

Narrative and creative by producer Kevya Cardoso, score and sound design by Patrick Lee, and mix by Chris James. Sophie Snelling is the executive producer, Al Riddell is head of factual podcasts, and Vicky Etchells is director of podcasts at Global. This is a Global Player Original Podcast.

This is a Global Player original podcast. Last time on Vine, six seconds that changed the world. It's code red. To protect morale, the digital board displaying daily user stats that's up in Vine HQ had quietly been taken down. Vine is spiraling.

This is a Global Player original podcast. Last time on Vine, six seconds that changed the world. It's code red. To protect morale, the digital board displaying daily user stats that's up in Vine HQ had quietly been taken down. Vine is spiraling.

Of course, none of this is helped by Instagram's rival push into video, all three of the app's founders leaving in quick succession, growing discontent from Vine's top creators, a general disregard of the app by its own parent company, Twitter, who has, by the way, just undergone a brutal series of layoffs. But aside from all that, yeah, things are going great. Why do you ask?

Of course, none of this is helped by Instagram's rival push into video, all three of the app's founders leaving in quick succession, growing discontent from Vine's top creators, a general disregard of the app by its own parent company, Twitter, who has, by the way, just undergone a brutal series of layoffs. But aside from all that, yeah, things are going great. Why do you ask?

Let's discuss this dilemma, right? Because the 1600 Viners are now completely dominating the platform. And is that necessarily a problem? Because they're attracting huge numbers of viewers, huge numbers of loops, as they said on Vine. And on the surface, at least, you would go, OK, well, happy Vine users equals happy Vine, right? But not really, right?

Let's discuss this dilemma, right? Because the 1600 Viners are now completely dominating the platform. And is that necessarily a problem? Because they're attracting huge numbers of viewers, huge numbers of loops, as they said on Vine. And on the surface, at least, you would go, OK, well, happy Vine users equals happy Vine, right? But not really, right?

They were kind of load bearing, weren't they? It was like, we don't like this incredibly popular section of the app. It's like when a doctor's like, we have to leave the bullet in or it will do more damage.

They were kind of load bearing, weren't they? It was like, we don't like this incredibly popular section of the app. It's like when a doctor's like, we have to leave the bullet in or it will do more damage.

How can you fix the platform if removing this group will kill the platform?

How can you fix the platform if removing this group will kill the platform?