The feed is fracturing culture. The open internet can fix it

With the World Cup around the corner and the energy of recent seasons still lingering, I’ve been thinking about the power of live sports — not just for the world’s biggest brands, but as cultural events that bring millions of us into the same moment.

I remember my first Super Bowl Sunday in the United States. My wife, daughter and I had just moved here in January 2015, arriving a few days earlier. We didn’t know many people yet, and I had little understanding of American culture. But a family we’d met while living in Ireland invited us to their home.

We walked into a crowded room — the air filled with the scent of chili and nachos, people holding beer bottles and sodas, and a game on the screen I didn't yet understand. But I noticed something immediately: Everyone was watching the same thing. Reacting to the same plays. Laughing at the same commercials. Debating the same calls.

That afternoon wasn’t just about learning the rules of football. It was about witnessing a cultural moment — deeply felt and shared by millions at the same time. I walked in as an outsider and left feeling more connected. Having lived in six different countries, I’ve learned that those moments are what make a place feel like home.

But a decade later, I worry that the very digital infrastructure we’ve built is making those "chili nacho moments" harder to find.

That observation underpins my decision to change my own career. After 13 years at Google, I joined The Trade Desk. Why leave one of the most successful companies in history? I get that question a lot. The answer is simple: I didn’t run away from something. I ran toward something. I ran toward the open internet, because I believe it plays a unique and increasingly important role in how culture is experienced today.

From ‘we’ moments to ‘I’ moments

Our industry loves to frame things as a binary. One model is good. Another is bad. Reality is more complicated. Different parts of the ecosystem serve different purposes. But I do think there’s a broader shift happening in how we experience culture.

What used to be shared “we” moments are increasingly becoming individual “I” moments, curated by algorithms. Personalization is powerful, but when it narrows our world too much, something essential gets lost.

The feed can become a lonely place to experience a miracle.

When cultural events are molded to fit our existing silos, we’re no longer experiencing the same moment — we are experiencing filtered versions of it. Over time, that doesn’t just change what we see; it changes how culture feels.

And the cost is real. Our research at The Trade Desk found that 65% of Gen Z — the most connected generation in history — say they’d be better off mentally and physically if they relied less on social media. They’re sensing the same fragmentation many of us feel.

Where culture gathers

If you step back, the most meaningful cultural moments still have something in common. They bring people together: live sports, major entertainment releases — the events that millions experience at the same time.

These moments don’t live in one place. They unfold across streaming TV, premium publishers, audio, and more. They extend into conversations, highlights, analysis — but at their core, they’re shared experiences. Culture becomes meaningful when it gathers us.

And that’s where the open internet matters.

It’s not just a collection of channels. It is the connective environment where discovery, engagement, and participation come together. This is where culture actually lives and breathes. On average, Americans spend 62% of their digital time across the open internet, often seeking something deeper than passive engagement.

Today, people don’t experience media in a straight line. They move fluidly — from a live match to highlights, to a podcast, to analysis. To them it’s one continuous experience.

And much of that happens in environments where people actively choose to engage — where they are learning, exploring, focusing. That’s a different kind of attention. A more intentional one.

The data reflects this. Consumers trust premium environments 81% more than social feeds, and premium media is 1.5x more effective at improving positive brand perception. Why? Because the environment respects the audience’s intelligence and their desire for a shared experience.

The democratized arena

CMOs today are navigating enormous complexity. More channels, more data and more pressure to deliver outcomes. The challenge isn’t where to place a single bet. It’s how to show up across the full experience in a way that feels natural and connected.

The best brands don’t insert themselves into culture. They show up where it’s already happening.

What's changed is access.

In the past, participating in these moments was reserved for the world’s largest brands. Today, the open internet has democratized the arena. Through programmatic technology, more brands than ever can participate in premium environments — places that were once out of reach.

Whether it’s a fan watching highlights on their phone, a family streaming the game on connected TV, or a commuter listening to a sports podcast, the open internet doesn’t fragment these experiences — it amplifies them. In fact, 76% of Gen Z agree that open internet channels prompt deeper engagement with their passion. So it's no wonder that 83% of marketing decision makers plan to increase or maintain their open marketplace buys in 2026, according to The Trade Desk Intelligence x Ipsos DSP Study.

Choosing the open square

Personalization will remain one of the most powerful tools in media. But like any tool, it depends on how we use it. If it helps us discover new ideas, that’s a good thing. If it narrows our perspective, we risk losing something bigger. We lose the “we” in our culture.

And that “we” still matters. It creates connection, builds common ground and turns moments into memories.

As we look toward the World Cup and the next great waves of global innovation, the opportunity for brands isn't just to target users. It’s to sustain the spaces where we come together, where shared experiences still happen. This is a call to invest in open, shared digital environments that prioritize common ground over isolated feeds.

I think back to that Super Bowl Sunday in 2015. A room full of people I barely knew. Watching something I didn’t yet understand, and still feeling like I belonged.

That is the power of shared experience.

Culture becomes meaningful not when it trends in a silo. It becomes meaningful when it gathers us. Let’s make sure the next generation — and every newcomer — still has a place to pull up a chair, share a plate of nachos, and feel part of something bigger.

The Current is owned and operated by The Trade Desk Inc.