"Sponsored" on most of these platforms means "Chosen" now that there are tight controls on content manipulation and engagement. The only likely reason platform

"Sponsored" on most of these platforms means "Chosen" now that there are tight controls on content manipulation and engagement. The only likely reason platforms allow independent creators to even upload any more is the "grind value" that generates more popularity for the platform... Just the sheer volume of people creating repetitive success advice and tutorials on how to create content is a testament to the grind culture that these platforms encourage, without really rewarding anything unless they find someone who will be a veiled "corporate vessel" for the platform or at least for a sponsored brand. TikTok (for example) encourages trends for music that are hand picked to repeatedly rotate on algorithms, its pretty obvious now to most regular creators on these platforms, that top raking content is always on the charts because it's hand picked... This is the only way companies as large as YouTube and TikTok can properly control and anticipate earnings and expenses every year. The big problem is that so many people are quitting their jobs to become creators, without properly knowing how much they're being ushered into the false narrative that they can become independently successful and viral on personality alone by following trends that only serve to make platform sponsored personalities and artists (and of course the platform itself) tons of money which is not shared with anyone else in reality (except for investors). YouTube even has a significant loading delay on older and less viewed content in favor of sponsored content on their trending lists.... That only works to further disadvantage unknown and independent content creators, among may other things. It would not be as much of a terrible scheme if they were at least transparent about the fact that they really only want to have you watch ads and watch them play what they pick, then creators would simply wise up and go back to creating their own web sites, and stop watching all of the canned "techniques to get rich quick" tutorials on these platforms... Sponsored creators also pay heavily for their promotion as well, which is also not yet discussed, many times they aren't the ones earning the full creator fund payouts because there are corporations and teams of people sponsoring them, even though they work hard to look like they do everything on their own or with minimal help.