This week saw the 2026 edition of the YouTube Festival at the London Palladium.  A long line of advertisers, agencies, creators and more packed the house for what was an insightful, entertaining and slickly produced couple of hours. 

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One of the main themes came from Mark Ritson and his concept of ‘Bothism’, whereby marketers should not be choosing between Brand and Performance, Qual and Quant, Human and AI, but should be addressing ‘both’ in all cases, YouTube being a rare example of a media platform that can cover all bases.

I like and subscribe to Bothism, and it was clear from the content on at the Festival that YouTube can do it.  The platform reach is huge and now majority happening on main TV sets.  The ability to lean on the trust and authenticity of established creators carries undeniable value in building consideration.  The roots of conversion and acquisition run deep with shoppable formats increasingly prevalent.  All of this authentically platform-native.  It’s all very compelling.

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And although at no point was a direct comparison to the ‘traditional’ broadcasters made on stage (perhaps a clear sign of confidence in the product), I couldn’t help but do so from my seat.  Some may well have walked away asking themselves, why go anywhere else?

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There were some subtle answers to this question throughout.  The event had the familiar feel and the format of an Up Fronts or Palooza, like an unspoken recognition of how well the likes of Channel 4 and ITV have always put on a good show for the industry.  Niko referenced his stint on Traitors, John Nellis was off to Strictly training post-show.  Both are creators whose content lives on YouTube but who see the value in linear event programming to boost profile and reach – programming that is still reaching millions and creating buzz.

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Perhaps the most obvious answer though goes back to Bothism.  Good media planning relies on understanding an audience and the breadth of their media consumption behaviour.  Sometimes that leans more to creator content and streaming, sometimes it’s huddling on a sofa for a live TV moment.  More often that not – it’s both.