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Taylor Lorenz has been writing for years about people who gain a following from their cooking shows on Instagram or sewing channels on YouTube, and then leverage their popularity to sell merchandise or promote companies’ products.

Some of you must be thinking: People make money that way? And who cares? Yes, and you should. These “influencers” are shaping our habits, even during a pandemic and even if we’re clueless about it.

Taylor talked to me about influencers’ power, their current mix of opportunity and stress, and her STRONG FEELINGS that internet companies could do more to protect us from manic online lives.

Shira: Why should we care about influencers?

Taylor: Influencers are part of a massive industry that drives retail, marketing, entertainment and more. Companies’ marketing deals with influencers are projected to be far larger than advertising sales for the entire newspaper industry in the United States.