Meanwhile, the programs that lacked visible mics and cans displayed some of the hallmarks of social-forward fare, including an emphasis on personal stories as well as personalities skilled at speaking confessionally to-camera.

CheckedUp currently has two originals that highlight real stories: Inside This Life, which interviews patients dealing with chronic conditions, and The Pulse: Real Talk, which passes the mic to doctors for conversations about the health care issues of the day.

“Inside This Life is really about hearing from the patients directly,” CheckedUp’s co-founder and CEO, Dr. Richard Awdeh, tells ADWEEK. “The Pulse is tackling how we’ve left the era of evidence-based medicine. We’re now in the era of ‘I heard it on TikTok.’”

And, for the record, the personalities leading original content don’t have to be human. During its presentation, Future Today announced a partnership with Chuck E. Cheese that will include a new media network and video content starring the chain restaurant’s rodent mascot that will appear on the company’s HappyKids FAST platform.

“It’s another way for them to be in front of the consumers and highlight and showcase the experience families will get at the restaurants,” Future Today co-founder Vikrant Mathur tells ADWEEK. “For them, it’s about being top of mind, having another touchpoint with the consumer, and reinforcing the brand.”