PEORIA — We are all living in the kingdom of social media now, and content creators are king.
We know them and have favorites, even home-grown right here in central Illinois.
Where would we be without Judy Wang and her fantastic pancakes served in a tiny diner in Galesburg and advertised with skits she creates herself?
Or Hollywood actor and Peoria Heights native Seth Boyer delivering his iconic entry line “PeORRiaa!” before wildly popular social media restaurant reviews?Or Zack Belk and his “Best Hooper in the P” mantra?
And the late Steve Bridges, a comedian on the national stage who presented characters on social media in videos created on locations right in Peoria and Peoria Heights? His platform and work endure.
We need your voice. The Journal Star is launching a search for the area’s Top Content Creators of 2026, a project to determine the best of the best.
We want to highlight social media influencers who live in a region defined as Peoria County, Tazewell County, Woodford County, Knox County, Stark County, Fulton County, Marshall County and Bureau County.
Characters whose online presence triggers conversations, reactions, participation from serious to silly to business and pleasure. And we want you to pick them.
This is not for traditional news outlets, we’re not looking for breaking news or political trackers or organizations putting out their business message.
Ad spending on social media was expected to surpass $276 billion in 2025, according to Forbes. It also reported that 83% of that ad spending would be on mobile by 2030. And that content creator recommendations account for 74% of online purchases and 92% of consumers trust influencers more than brand ads.
So we want to collect nominations from you and find out who the best of the best are in the Peoria area. No limit on how many or who. The nomination period is June 15-22.
All nominees are subject to background checks and will be selected to advance by a Journal Star panel. Click here for the nomination form.
From June 22-26 we will narrow the field to no more than a Top 10. After that, it’s in your hands, as the finalists go live on pjstar.com in a poll in which you can vote.
There are more stages to follow from there, details coming on how a winner is determined, stories on the finalists, all of that. Just follow along here for updates as the project is scheduled to run into August.
Dave Eminian is the Journal Star senior writer and sports columnist, and covers Bradley men’s basketball, the Rivermen and Chiefs. He writes the Cleve In The Eve sports column for pjstar.com. He can be reached at deminian@pjstar.com. Follow him on X.com @icetimecleve.
This article originally appeared on Journal Star: The Peoria Journal Star wants you to nominate the best content creators on social media
Reporting by Dave Eminian, Peoria Journal Star / Journal Star
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
By Dave Eminian, Peoria Journal Star | USA TODAY Network
