All the news that’s fit to scroll: New York Times launches TikTok-style feed in main app

The news is now on TikTok, and the sources delivering that news are reimagining their services to suit the new era. One of the biggest changes is happening at The New York Times, which is now offering a bottomless, scrollable feed filled with short-form videos and other updates from the Times newsroom.

The Times previously experimented with standalone apps filled with multimedia content, though it has consolidated most of those apps within its main mobile hub. The new feed will live on a Watch tab on the main NYT app, where viewers will be able to catch the latest dish from the Gray Lady’s reporters.

According to Axios, the Watch tab will go live on October 22. It will feature content from across the New York Times network, ranging from the popular NYT Cooking hub to sports destination The Athletic to consumer review platform Wirecutter. In a notable turn for the publication that once prided itself on splashy, long-form digital content, the Times will keep the uploads in its feed short, with most of them running for three minutes or less.

“Our news app is a multimedia hub that can do everything,” New York Times Deputy Managing Editor Sam Dolnick told Axios. “It’s easier for the consumer to have one place to go where you can read, watch, listen.”

While there might be some cultural fatigue when it comes to TikTok copycats, the New York Times is choosing a good time to launch its scrollable feed. Newspapers have carved out territory for themselves on TikTok, with The Washington Post building the most notable stable of short-form reporters. As some of the faces of the Post‘s social accounts go solo, there’s an opportunity for the Times to reach a bigger share of the 20% of Americans who reportedly get their news from TikTok.

New York’s flagship news publication is not the only media company chasing that audience. CNN has made its own play for the TikTok generation by launching CNN Creators. The multiplatform show will introduce a new group of journalists — including Vice, BBC, and Al-Jazeera alumni — who will operate within short-form milieux.

Can these legacy organizations connect with the next generation of news viewers? TikTokers might still prefer to get their updates from independent voices like V Spehar, but that won’t stop the Times and CNN from trying.