Revisiting Iconic 2016 Snapchat Filters

Host Ellen revisits the cultural phenomenon of Snapchat and its iconic 2016 filters, particularly focusing on the viral "Damn Daniel" video. She shares how two high school students achieved fame through this Snapchat post, contrasting it with her own high school experience of getting detention for saying "damn." Ellen introduces Snapchat as an app for sending disappearing pictures and short videos, humorously calling it "a combination of Instagram memory loss."

Ellen highlights impressive statistics surrounding Snapchat's reach and impact during that period. She notes the platform garnered "7 billion views a day" and that users collectively shared "over 9,000 photos per second." The host also points out the significant earning potential for top Snapchat stars, who could make "over $100,000 a week," prompting her to exclaim, "Damn, Daniel. I need to stop talking and get on Snapchat right now."

The episode then transitions into a live demonstration of Snapchat's "lenses" feature. Ellen, with the help of an assistant, experiments with various augmented reality filters on her face, eliciting laughter and applause from the audience. She playfully questions whether she has become rich yet from her filter use, referencing the $100,000 weekly earnings statistic mentioned earlier.

This segment offers a nostalgic look back at a pivotal moment in social media history, showcasing Snapchat's early viral capabilities and its innovative filter technology. Listeners gain insight into the platform's functionality, its immense popularity, and the nascent creator economy that was already beginning to take shape in the mid-2010s, all through the lens of a memorable internet sensation.