Katherine Grace "Katie" Feeney (born August 16, 2002) is an American social media personality with over 13M followers across TikTok, Youtube, Instagram and Snapchat. Her content primarily consists of sports, college life and lifestyle content. She also has served as the social media correspondent for the Washington Commanders since April 2022.[2]
Katie Feeney | ||||||||||
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 Feeney in November 2022 | ||||||||||
| Born | Katherine Grace Feeney August 16, 2002 Olney, Maryland, U.S. | |||||||||
| Education | Pennsylvania State University | |||||||||
| Occupation |
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| Years active | 2015–present | |||||||||
TikTok information | ||||||||||
| Page | ||||||||||
| Followers | 7.4 million | |||||||||
| Likes | 588.7 million | |||||||||
YouTube information | ||||||||||
| Channel | ||||||||||
| Genre | Shorts | |||||||||
| Subscribers | 3.36 million[1] | |||||||||
| Total views | 4.4 billion[1] | |||||||||
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Last updated: October 28, 2023 | ||||||||||
Early life edit
Feeney attended Sherwood High School in Olney, Maryland where she served as the school's SGA treasurer, along with running track and part of the dance team. Her father is a deputy state's attorney, while her mother works part-time in event planning. She is the youngest of three children, having two older brothers.[3] Before her social media career, she had been competitively dancing since the age of four.[4]
Career edit
Rise to popularity on social media (2015–2021) edit
TikTok and Snapchat edit
Feeney first began posting to TikTok when it was still known as Musical.ly in 2015. She continued to create content throughout high school, amassing 2 million TikTok followers when the Coronavirus pandemic started in 2020. During the pandemic, she began posting videos on the growth of sea monkeys and unboxing videos.[4] In February 2021, she gained national attention when she made over one million dollars using Snapchat's "Spotlight" feature within six weeks of posting content, something that had never been done before in Snapchat's history.[5]
Youtube Shorts edit
Like TikTok, Feeney has been active on YouTube Shorts since it was launched in 2021. Through this, she was able to gain more than 750,000 new subscribers on the platform in just three months.[6] Due to her success with shorts, YouTube invited her to be their official correspondent for Super Bowl LVI in 2022. She served as a de facto sideline reporter, interviewing players, and documented the game by posting shorts on her channel. She has described YouTube as her "fastest growing platform."[7]
Penn State, Washington Commanders, and White House (2021–present) edit
Feeney enrolled at Penn State University in the fall of 2021, studying Broadcast Journalism in hopes of starting her own podcast or talk show. She began producing more lifestyle oriented content, focusing on the life of a college student.[8] She also works with the Penn State Football team, along with the school's other sports, to provide social media content.[9] Feeney has also used her platform to fundraise for the school's "THON" fundraiser, which raises money for children fighting cancer at Penn State Health Children's Hospital.[10]
On April 13, 2022, Feeney was hired as the first ever "Commanders Social Media Correspondent" by the Washington Commanders. This marked the first time in NFL history that a social media personality partnered with an NFL team. As part of the partnership, Feeney provides exclusive team coverage to her followers, with the goal of connecting them and other fans to the organization. During the 2022 NFL season, she covered the draft party, rookie minicamp, training camp, media day, and select home games.[11]
On November 28, 2022, Feeney was hired as the White House social media correspondent for AKSM Media.[12] Feeney will provide her followers with coverage of White House events, as well as expanding White House reporting via social media. AKSM's goal for Katie is to connect a younger audience to the White House and limit the spread of misinformation on social media.[13] On her first day on the job, she began posting content covering First Lady Jill Biden's 2022 Christmas decorations at the White House.[14]
In 2023, Feeney worked with Instagram to continue to build her brand. In February, she was selected to be a tester for their new feature, called "Broadcast Channels" along with other celebrities such as Chloe Kim, Mikaela Shiffrin, FaZe Rug, and Valkyrae.[15] During the 2023 World Series, Feeney represented Instagram as an exclusive content creator for Game 1 at Globe Life Field.[16] A month later, she was recognized as one of the platform's "Creators of Tomorrow" along with 24 other content creators.[17]
Public image edit
Feeney is known as a "Campus Celebrity" and "one of the most recognizable faces on the sidelines of Beaver Stadium" at Penn State.[18][19] Maddie Tyler of AKSM News, described Feeney as: "A pioneer in the social media industry where she has been able to create a sustaining career that is putting her through college."[14] Sam Gutelle of Tubefilter credited Feeney with "continuing to bridge the gap between short-form video and sports reporting."[20]
Personal life edit
Feeney is currently in a relationship with former Virginia Tech Baseball outfielder Jack Hurley.[21] Hurley was selected by the Arizona Diamondbacks with the 80th overall pick in the 2023 MLB Draft. [22]
References edit
- ^ a b "About Katie Feeney". YouTube.
- ^ "Commanders hire social media influencer as team correspondent". USA Today. April 13, 2022.
- ^ "Katie Feeney gets first-ever NFL social media role". June 11, 2022.
- ^ a b Melnick, Kyle (March 4, 2021). "TikTok has become a go-to platform for some high school athletes". The Washington Post. Retrieved January 12, 2023.
- ^ "Teenager Makes a 'Life-Changing' $1 Million Using Snapchat's Spotlight: 'My Mom and I Screamed'". People.
- ^ "TikTok Creators Turn to YouTube Shorts Amid "Insane" Subscriber Growth". The Hollywood Reporter. August 26, 2021.
- ^ "YouTube is taking one of its top Shorts creators to the Super Bowl (Exclusive)". February 11, 2022.
- ^ "Meet the Penn State Freshman Who's a TikTok Superstar". September 3, 2021.
- ^ "Commanders hire social media influencer as team correspondent". April 13, 2022.
- ^ "Join THON Supporters as we spread hope around the world!".
- ^ "Washington Commanders announce social media star Katie Feeney to serve as first ever 'Commanders social media correspondent'".
- ^ "Katie Feeney Appointed White House Social Media Correspondent". AKSM Media Press Room. AKSM Media. November 28, 2022. Retrieved February 16, 2023.
- ^ "White House Hires Katie Feeney as Social Media Correspondent". January 10, 2023.
- ^ a b "Katie Feeney is Now Walking the Halls of the White House". December 5, 2022.
- ^ "Instagram Broadcast Channels Let Creators Slide into Your DMS". Pcmag.
- ^ "Instagram".
- ^ "Instagram continues 'Creators of Tomorrow' tradition with new list of culture drivers". November 8, 2023.
- ^ "Famous Penn Staters We Want to See on Trading Cards". October 21, 2022.
- ^ "Penn State's Queen of Tik Tok: Katie Feeney". October 28, 2022.
- ^ "YouTube Shorts gives Katie Feeney another sports correspondent gig at the MLB All-Star Game". July 18, 2022.
- ^ "My 8 Must-Follow Influencers". October 14, 2022.
- ^ "Diamondbacks' Jack Hurley: Snagged by Arizona". July 10, 2023.