Teens' icons and role models aren't just actors and athletes anymore — now, they're looking up to their favorite people to follow on Instagram and YouTube. Financial analysts at Piper Jaffray recently surveyed 9, teenagers as part of its biannual project to gain insight into Generation Z's favorite brands, day-to-day habits, and preferences when it comes to shopping, spending money, and spending time. The results, released Tuesday, show a lot about teens' social media behavior: they're spending more time watching videos on YouTube rather than on Netflix, and Instagram is their most-frequented app — although Snapchat remains the favorite. Researchers also asked teens about their favorite influencers and personalities to follow across social media. The top 10 people that teens chose have massive presences across Instagram, YouTube, and Twitter.

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(tied) 10. Sommer Ray
It was launched in the early days of YouTube, just 16 months after the video platform went online. Initially pretending to be an authentic YouTube video diary or vlog , the show gained wide media attention when it was revealed as fictional in September Launched in the early days of YouTube, just 16 months after the video platform went online, lonelygirl15 focuses on the life of a teenage girl named Bree — played by a year-old actress Jessica Rose [2] — whose YouTube username is the eponymous "lonelygirl15". After the fictional status of the show was revealed in September , it gradually evolved into a multi-character series including both character videoblogs and action sequences, with a complex story universe involving "trait positive girls" who are sought by an evil organization called "The Order". The series was developed under the working title The Children of Anchor Cove. As of July , the series had more than million combined views. Its first, the British-based KateModern , ran from July through June on Bebo , and took place in the same fictional universe. On June 16, , the tenth anniversary of the first video on the account, a new video on the account with Jessica Lee Rose returning as Bree Avery was uploaded, with a message that the series was restarting. Before the vlog was revealed as fake, the title character dealt with mundane teenage problems such as being grounded; lonelygirl15 posted video replies to, and dropped the names of popular YouTubers.
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We use cookies and other technologies to analyze site traffic, understand patterns of use, and improve your browsing experience. See our cookie policy. Skip to Content. See what's streaming, limit strong violence or language, and find picks your kids will love with Common Sense Media Plus. There's a lot to be wary of on YouTube, and sometimes good role models go bad. With so many inappropriate videos out there, it can be challenging to find YouTube channels that aren't full of behavior you don't want your kids repeating. Luckily, that's not the case for these popular, heavily subscribed YouTubers. These likable vloggers spread positive vibes with their great messages.