What's Resonating: Tuesday, February 3rd
Grammy commentary, Epstein revelations, and Groundhog Day
We’re back with another edition of What’s Resonating – a daily newsletter from the Magnitude Media team that delivers a data-driven snapshot of the stories, trends, and messages shaping online culture and politics.
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Now, let’s dive in.
What’s Resonating
Commentary on the Grammys and award speeches
New Epstein revelations
Groundhog Day
ICE encounters
Today’s Takeaway: While neutral pages posting about the Grammys dwarfed all other topics in our database yesterday, right-wing pages concerningly out-posted and out-performed left-wing pages on this massive cultural moment. Read on to dig deeper, and a reminder to left-leaning pages: with the Super Bowl coming up on Sunday, make sure you and your team are thinking through ways to engage in these cultural moments that cross over into politics and dominate the social media landscape.
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Yesterday on Social Media
🟦 Left-leaning accounts
Left-leaning pages posted about the Grammys:
The Democrats posted a carousel of all of the celebrities wearing “ICE Out” pins at the Grammys. (5.6 million views, most-liked left-leaning post)
Aaron Parnas reported that Trump is considering suing comedian Trevor Noah. (1.9 million views)
Matt Bernstein clipped Billie Eilish’s acceptance speech where she says, “no one is illegal on stolen land” and “fuck ICE,” with Bernstein adding, “speak the truth even when your voice shakes.” (5.6 million views)
Top left-leaning posts covered new information in the Epstein case:
The Daily Show clipped Jon Stewart’s monologue where he discussed the lack of accountability for public figures named in the Epstein files. (2.3 million views)
Creator Devin shared a video saying that the Epstein files revealed a 4chan post where a jail officer alleges that Epstein was removed from his cell on the night he passed away. (1.2 million views, 31x average likes)
MS NOW posted a video on the high-profile names revealed in the latest Epstein file release. (2.7 million views)
Sen. Bernie Sanders said public disgust over the “appalling details” of the Epstein files should also apply to “the degree to which enormously wealthy and powerful individuals live by their own rules – and continue to get away with it.” (162,000 likes, 4x average shares)
Aaron Parnas had several other popular posts:
One where he directly addresses that his father went to prison for working for Donald Trump. (1.5 million views)
Another detailing a whistleblower complaint against Tulsi Gabbard “so bad that the Trump administration keeps it locked in a safe.” (1.6 million views)
Magnitude’s View: Parnas is a good example of a high-volume poster who uses the news cycle to great effect. He posted over 55 times yesterday across platforms (and 10+ times on each of TikTok, Facebook, and Threads), earning over 2.7 million engagements, which made up over 12% of all of yesterday’s left-leaning engagements. Sharing headlines or responding to these viral posts is a useful way to gain traction in a busy news cycle.
President Obama warned that if Congress doesn’t act, the last nuclear arms treaty between the U.S. and Russia could expire, which would “pointlessly wipe out decades of diplomacy, and … spark another arms race that makes the world less safe. (157,000 likes)
NowThis Impact had several popular posts featuring ICE encounters:
One included a clip of ICE pulling a gun on unarmed U.S. citizens in a small Minnesota town. (5.8 million views)
Another featured ICE tear-gassing a seven year old at an Alex Pretti memorial bike ride and march in Portland, OR. (4 million views)
Another featured ICE agents breaking down a family’s door after taking their father and grandfather. (1.4 million views)
Magnitude’s View: This footage is from November 2025, but is circulating now after Mother Jones published an investigative report on this family’s plight. This demonstrates the importance of filming ICE encounters, which encourages follow-up reporting and creates opportunities for elected officials to go deep on how ICE’s violent actions are harming their communities.
Brian Tyler Cohen posted an interview with former prosecutor Glenn Kirschner about the low likelihood of success of Trump’s legal threats against Trevor Noah. (1.3 million views, 2x average likes, 248x average comments)
🟥 Right-leaning accounts
Right-wing figures commented on the Grammys and speeches from award winners:
Riley Gaines said “the logic” of Billie Eilish saying “No one is illegal on stolen land” “doesn’t even make sense.” (1.5 million views, 4x average engagements)
Fox News described Jelly Roll’s Grammy acceptance speech as “passionate” and “faith-filled.” (466,000 likes, 16x average likes, 15x average shares)
Benny Johnson posted Jelly Roll’s speech and added, “While the rest of Hollywood is giving speeches defending illegal aliens, Jelly Roll used his time on stage at the Grammys to praise Jesus Christ.” (2.1 million views, 12x average likes)
Franklin Graham said Jelly Roll’s speech was the “only bright spot” during the Grammys. (199,000 likes, 5x average likes)
Creator Evan asked, “How many of these celebrities are living in gated communities with walls and high security on a multimillion-dollar property?” (3.8 million views, 41x average likes, 74x average shares)
Elon Musk added the “100” emoji to a post criticizing Billie Eilish’s speech. (344,000 likes, 6x average engagements)
End Wokeness posted a photo of Billie Eilish and said, “ICE should show up with trucks of illegals to Billie Eilish’s $14 million mansion in LA.” (105,000 likes, 5x average likes)
The New York Post posted a clip of Trump saying he’s going to sue Trevor Noah over his jokes made at the Grammys (5.6 million views, 7x average likes, 8x average shares)
Magnitude’s View: Neutral pages clearly led coverage of the Grammys, but right-leaning pages also saw a strong performance. Since Sunday, Grammy-related posts from the right over-performed by 122%, far better than either neutral or left-leaning posts, with posts equally split between condemning some figures (Eilish, Noah) and praising others (Jelly Roll). Right-leaning pages have also posted more often about the Grammys than left-leaning pages, surprisingly. With another cultural mega-moment coming up this Sunday, left-leaning pages cannot pass up these opportunities to amplify political comments from cultural figures whenever possible.
Fox News posted about Turning Point USA’s alternative Super Bowl halftime show featuring Kid Rock. (270,000 average likes, 9x average likes)
Elon Musk added an American flag emoji to a Nicki Minaj post calling for ID requirements for voting. (222,000 likes, 4x average engagements)
Fox News reported that Punxsutawney Phil predicted six more weeks of winter. (4.7 million views, 26x average likes, 101x average shares)
🟨 Neutral (Political) accounts
Neutral pages also heavily covered the Grammys:
CBS posted a clip of Bad Bunny accepting the Grammy for Album of the Year. (11.4 million views, 33x average likes)
Brut also shared the clip. (6.1 million views, 8x average likes)
CNN reported on Donald Trump threatening to sue Trevor Noah over an Epstein joke made during the Grammys. (11.3 million views, 26x average likes)
BBC News posted the video of Cher announcing Luther Vandross as a Grammy winner before clarifying that it was actually Kendrick Lamar. (12.8 million views, 9x average likes)
CNN shared the same clip. (6.3 views, 10x average likes, 6x average shares)
CBS Mornings posted a red carpet interview from the Grammys with artist Zara Larsson, who named her own song as her favorite of all time. (4.2 million views, 37x average likes, 4x average shares)
Epstein posts also broke through for neutral pages:
Sky News posted a “new video” from the Justice Department showing “Jeffrey Epstein running around the kitchen island in his Little Saint James home.” (12.3 million views, 16x average likes, 61x average shares)
BBC News shared newly released footage where Epstein is asked directly if he’s the “devil himself?” (26.4 million views, 15x average likes)
Magnitude’s View: This clip is from Steve Bannon’s interview with Jeffrey Epstein, filmed in 2019. It was filmed as part of a prospective documentary Bannon was working on, but never released. The documents from the Department of Justice have revealed the close nature of Epstein and Bannon’s relationship. Bannon has refused to comment, so left-leaning pages should continue to press the issue and draw connections between the two.
NBC News reported that Punxsutawney Phil predicted six more weeks of winter. (8.3 million views, 12x average likes)
CNN reported on the cold weather causing “cold-blooded iguanas to fall from the trees.” (6.2 million views, 8x average likes, 19x average shares)
ABC News posted about a jewelry heist in London. (5.9 million views, 2x average likes, 2x average
🟨 Neutral (Cultural) accounts
Clips and moments from the Grammys were predictably popular on cultural pages:
Entertainment Tonight shared a clip of the Osbourne family reacting to the tribute performance for Ozzy (1.9 million likes, 15.5 million views, 15x average likes and views, most-liked tracked post) and a video of Lady Gaga reacting to Bad Bunny’s win while calling out the “heartbreaking” things happening in the world. (8.6 million views, 10x average likes)
Patty Pop Culture posted a recap of the evening. (9.5 million views, 18x average likes)
TMZ shared Nicki Minaj’s response to Trevor Noah’s comments at the Grammys. (4.2 million views)
TMZ posted about Alex Pretti’s killing being ruled a homicide by the Hennepin County medical examiner. (189,000 likes, 145x average engagements)
TMZ posted about Turning Point USA’s alternative Super Bowl halftime show featuring Kid Rock. (116,000 likes, 13x average likes)
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