• Social-media influencer is a highly sought-after job these days, especially among Gen Zers.
• The first step to becoming an influencer is posting consistently on apps like Instagram and TikTok.
• Creators also say media kits, membership groups, and talent managers have helped grow their brands.

Social media has created many new ways to make money, and over the past few years, it has led millions of people around the world to become influencers.

Platforms like TikTok, Instagram, YouTube, and Snapchat have opened up doors for individuals who want to switch careers, become full-time creators, or supplement the income from their 9-to-5 jobs.

The most important step to getting started as an influencer is to pick a platform or two and begin posting consistently. While some creators eventually land on a specific content niche, such as fitness, beauty, fashion, or education, others post about many topics.

Creator Ayomi Samaraweera gained hundreds of followers a few weeks after uploading her first TikTok when one of her videos about resigning and applying for new jobs went viral.

"It was a lot of trial and error in the beginning," Samaraweera previously told Business Insider. "I wasn't really thinking about a niche or how my content could be unique. I just posted what I felt like at the moment."

Read more about how Samaraweera became a full-time content creator and got her first brand deal with 2,000 followers

A steady posting cadence has even helped some creators successfully launch companies, like Nadya Okamoto, who founded the period-care brand August in 2021. She first grew her TikTok following rapidly by posting 100 times a day about menstrual hygiene and her experience in reproductive healthcare.

"To me, the TikTok algorithm is like a lottery," she previously told BI. "The more lottery tickets you put in, the more chances you have of winning or, in this case, going viral."

Read more about how 2 Gen-Z entrepreneurs leveraged TikTok to launch and grow a period-care startup

Here's exactly how to become an influencer and start making money:

How many followers you need to be an influencer

Most brands take an influencer's audience size into account when considering them for a paid collaboration. As a result, influencers are categorized based on their follower count.

Nano influencers have only a few thousand followers, under 10,000, but can still partner with many different brands. California-based creator Stacy Kim had only around 4,200 followers on Instagram but landed more than 40 paid partnerships in over a year and a half with companies like Samsung and Clinique.

"My engagement on posts is really high, and I heard that most brands care more about that than the number of followers you have," she previously told BI.

Read more about how the nano influencer pitches sponsorship deals

The next category, micro influencers, are classified as social-media users with between 10,000 to 100,000 followers. For many brands, this is the preferred tier of creators to work with because they have a highly engaged audience but charge a lot less than celebrities or very well-known social-media personalities.

Maesha Shonar, a micro influencer with 24,000 followers on Instagram, previously told BI she had such a highly engaged audience. To stand out to brands, she created a pitch proposal, which outlined two sponsorship options the brand could choose from — each with specific timelines, deliverables, and rates — and case studies of her recent collaborations.

Read more about how the micro influencer gets brand deals

Influencers who have more than 100,000 followers are the next tier, followed by mega-influencers who have multiple millions.

Fashion influencer Nate White has 1.8 million followers on TikTok and earned six figures in 2022 by collaborating with companies like Verizon and Amazon Prime.

"The money's changed my life," he previously told BI. "I've been able to move out from the hood where I'm from … the kids in that neighborhood looked up to me and I miss that, but I did this for me."

Read more about how much the TikToker earns with 1.8 million followers

Meanwhile, YouTube star MrBeast, who has over 280 million subscribers, brought in $223 million in revenue in 2023 through various businesses, including his YouTube channels, sponsorships, and chocolate and snack brand Feastables.

Read more about YouTube star MrBeasts' business empire, which he expects to generate $700 million in 2024

How influencers get paid

After amassing an engaged audience, influencers can start making money directly through their respective app's monetization programs, by creating sponsored content for brands, or through affiliate marketing, among other revenue streams.

Pay can range from a few thousand dollars for an Instagram sponsorship to six figures a year for a full-time creator, such as photographer and videographer Tej Patel, who made $100,000 in 2022 through his photo and video work, sponsorships, and the TikTok Creator Fund, which has since been discontinued.

Brand deals are one of the most popular ways to earn money as an influencer since companies are always looking for talent to help promote their products or services. Some brands have earned a reputation for rolling out more inclusive campaigns by paying creators fairly and allowing more creative control.

Take a look at new data on influencer brand deals in 2024

Platforms also pay creators based on their video views and engagement.

In 2023, some creators earned tens of millions of dollars through TikTok's Creativity Program beta, now dubbed Creator Rewards, which pays influencers for TikToks over 60 seconds.

Read more about how TikTokers can score huge paydays for longer videos

On Snapchat, creators have had success making money from its ad-revenue program. In 2023, Gen-Z creator couple AJ and Grey made $84,000 and $21,000, respectively, from the program. The initiative allows creators with at least 50,000 subscribers on the platform to make money through the ads their followers are shown in between Snap stories.

Affiliate marketing is another popular way to make money after becoming an influencer. This revenue stream allows creators to link to products or services they use, and if a follower buys it through their customized link, they earn a commission.

In 12 months, influencer Janesha Moore made $100,000 just from affiliate links on platforms like Amazon, in addition to partnering with lifestyle and beauty brands. She also highlighted how it's easier for BIPOC creators like her to earn money through affiliate marketing than brand partnerships, where there is often a pay disparity.

"Affiliate marketing is such a powerful tool because everyone has the same percentage they make, so it's really just a matter of the strategies you put into place to make the money work for you," she said.

Read more about how Moore got started with affiliate marketing and made over $100,000 in a year

How to contact brands and get paid for sponsorships

Email is how influencers usually first contact brands about working together. Most influencers who reach out to companies attach a media kit to display the value they would bring to a potential partnership. The document highlights information such as engagement analytics, audience makeups, and previous brand deals.

Read more about how to create a media kit and see examples from influencers

Creator Paulina Perez landed more than 20 paid partnerships in a year with global companies like Skims, Olay, and Sephora, all thanks to the media kit she created. She previously told BI that she's been fortunate to collaborate with so many brands because of her unique niche as a Hispanic creator who also posts videos in Spanish, and many of them have turned into long-term relationships.

"I still work with a lot of the companies that first took a chance on me," she said. "I just charge them more now because my engagement is higher and my audience has grown."

Check out the full 2-page media kit Perez she uses to land brand deals

Many creators also use Instagram, TikTok, or LinkedIn to direct message influencer marketers at brands who are looking for potential talent. Samaraweera, the creator who scored her first brand deal with 2,000 followers, Instagram DMed software company Fishbowl to land her first paid sponsorship.

"Timing is everything, so keep a lookout for brands who start engaging with your content because it's more than likely they're looking to work with you," she said.

See the email and DM templates influencers have used to reach out to brands

How influencers find jobs and get advice from other creators

Workplace communication platform Slack has surged in popularity in the past few years, so much so that those in the industry have started using the app to vent about their frustrations, land job opportunities, and connect with other creators, brands, and talent managers in the industry, with one labeling it a "gold mine" for opportunities.

"I had an influencer who really wanted to work with a certain brand, and I just asked in the channel and immediately got the contact info for the person in charge," talent manager Lissette Calveiro previously told BI.

Read more about how influencers use Slack to get brand deals

Many creators have also launched their own apps to help influencers get paid fairly by brands, like Christen Nino de Guzman's Clara for Creators and Samaraweera's Canopy for Creators. These apps, which are free to join for users, help creators compare rates and negotiate higher compensation. Nino de Guzman said she launched the app to help show others how easy it was to become an influencer and make money from social media.

"It used to be a typical kind of person, usually a middle-to-high class woman blogger who had access to video equipment and was traveling, but now anyone can be a creator," she said.

How to get a manager or publicist as an influencer

Once an influencer becomes more popular online and amasses a large following, they can choose to hire a talent manager and publicist to grow their brands even more. Talent managers can help creators with anything from starting a new company to negotiating higher rates for campaigns to generating content ideas.

Some talent management firms, like UTA or CAA, focus on representing the most well-known social media stars like Alix Earle. Others, like Kensington Grey and Society18, focus on creators from diverse and underrepresented backgrounds.

Explore BI's database of talent management firms and agencies that work with influencers

Talent managers previously told BI that they often get hired after a creator explodes online or goes viral and the creator feels overwhelmed with the incoming messages and offers to collaborate.

"Reinforcing that there's a reason this happened to them, it's all positive and they're safe and everything's good — that's probably the most time-consuming part of that first couple months of when someone blows up," said Danielle Pistotnik, a talent manager at Select Management Group.

Meanwhile, some influencers choose to hire publicists to help with their image, landing TV appearances or written features in prominent publications, and getting them on the list for exclusive industry events.

Read more about the top PR pros and publicists in the creator economy

• The liquor licenses for Donald Trump's New Jersey golf clubs are all in his eldest son's name.
• That, however, may not be enough to protect the clubs now that Trump is a felon.
• NJ officials now say Trump's criminal record bars him from profiting from liquor licenses.

The liquor licenses for Donald Trump's three New Jersey golf courses are in his eldest son's name, not his own, according to records obtained by Business Insider.

But hiding behind Donald Trump, Jr. isn't enough to protect the elder Trump.

On Friday, state officials said Trump's new felony record bars him from profiting from the licenses.

They announced they will not renew the licenses for Trump National Bedminster and Trump National Golf Club in Colts Neck due to last month's felony hush-money conviction.

The two clubs can continue to serve alcohol pending a July 19 hearing on the two licenses, which expire Sunday.

The liquor license at Trump's third course, Trump National Philadelphia — located 45 minutes outside that city in Pine Hill, New Jersey — was renewed by that borough on June 3, just four days after his guilty verdict on 34 felony business-falsification counts.

That license renewal went through at the last minute, thanks to an apparent happenstance of timing.

Only after sentencing, set for July 11, could any New Jersey official disqualify Trump from holding a liquor license, a spokesperson for the state's attorney general's office explained.

So far, no action has been taken by the state against the Pine Hill license.

New Jersey's AG's office regulates liquor licenses through its Division of Alcoholic Beverage Control. Attorney General Matthew J. Platkin announced two weeks ago that all three licenses were under review by his office.

Trump, at that time, brushed off the importance of that review, noting through a spokesman that he is "not the holder of any liquor license in New Jersey, and he is not an officer or director of any entity that holds a liquor license in New Jersey — or anywhere in the United States for that matter."

But on Friday, New Jersey officials found otherwise.

"A review by ABC indicates that Mr. Trump maintains a direct beneficial interest in the three liquor licenses through the receipt of revenues and profits from them, as the sole beneficiary of the Donald J. Trump Revocable Trust," the AG's spokesperson said.

Crimes of "moral turpitude"

Under state liquor law, a license may be pulled if anyone who either owns — or financially benefits from — the license is convicted of a crime of "moral turpitude."

The licenses for Trump's New Jersey clubs were at risk under both criteria, given his underlying financial interest in the clubs and his new criminal record, experts told Business Insider.

Trump, by his own sworn testimony, is the sole financial beneficiary of the Donald J. Trump Revocable Trust, the umbrella entity that owns all of the Trump Organization, including the three LLCs that hold the clubs' liquor licenses.

Trump was the sole trustee for a few months after leaving the White House, but then hopped back out in July 2021, leaving his eldest son as sole trustee as his criminal and civil investigations reached a climax.

Still, Trump testified at his New York civil fraud trial in October that he remained the "sole beneficiary" of the trust and its assets. That means as his liquor licenses prosper, so prospers Trump, in contrast with everyone else at Trump Org, who is just on salary.

Trump's apparent failings in the moral-turpitude department also put him at risk.

"Felony convictions are universally considered crimes of moral turpitude," said Peter M. Rhodes, partner at the Haddonfield, New Jersey-based firm Cahill, Wilinski, Rhodes & Joyce.

Given his felony conviction, "If the license is owned by a trust whose sole beneficiary is Donald Trump, then that, in my opinion, violates the ABC laws," said Rhodes, whose firm has served for 50 years as counsel to the New Jersey Licensed Beverage Association.

Trump's three New Jersey licenses are owned by LLCs, and Trump's namesake son is the president and license signatory for each one, according to records reviewed by BI.

The last time Trump almost lost all three of his New Jersey licenses was in 2021.

That year, Trump was allowed to keep the licenses after more than five years fighting state officials following a club-goer's 2015 fatal drunken driving crash.

State officials said a golfer at the Colts Neck club was overserved by one of the club's roving, liquor-serving golf carts. The golfer flipped his Mini-Cooper while driving home, in a crash that ejected and killed his own father.

Trump's three Jersey golf courses ultimately kept their licenses under a deal struck with Platkin's predecessor, former Attorney General Gurbir S. Grewal, who left office shortly after approving the settlement.

The Colts Neck course agreed to only serve alcohol indoors, to provide service training to employees, and to pay a $400,000 fine.

The final $100,000 installment on that fine is due in October, records reviewed by BI showed.

The arrangement was uncommon, said former New Jersey Assistant Attorney General William Fay, now an attorney specializing in liquor license regulatory law.

Over-serving patrons who then cause roadway fatalities carries a presumptive penalty of license revocation, Fay noted after the settlement.

"Given that Trump's New Jersey Golf Course generated a revenue of roughly 25 million in 2020 alone, this settlement appears to be 'pennies on this dollar' given the tragedy that occurred," he wrote.

Donald Trump, Jr. did not immediately return a call requesting comment. The law firm that handles Trump's New Jersey liquor licenses did not respond to phone calls and emails requesting comment.

• The Supreme Court ruled Friday that a statute used against the January 6 attackers was applied too broadly.
• It was great news for Trump, legal experts told BI.
• The DOJ noted the decision would most impact "a narrow band" of January 6 cases.

The Supreme Court on Friday ruled that the obstruction statute used to prosecute the January 6, 2021, defendants was employed too broadly by the Department of Justice.

The obstruction charge doesn't apply to anyone who breached the Capital, SCOTUS said.

Rather, to meet obstruction, "the Government must establish that the defendant impaired the availability or integrity for use in an official proceeding of records, documents, objects…or other things used in the proceeding," Chief Justice John Roberts wrote in the court's decision.

Legal experts told Business Insider the decision was great news for Trump and could result in resentencing for certain January 6 defendants.

But it's far from a sweeping victory. That's because Trump and the majority of the January 6, 2021, attackers were charged with more than just obstruction.

The Department of Justice noted in response to the SCOTUS ruling that it would "most significantly impact a narrow band of cases."

Of the 1,427 people charged in the Capitol attack, the DOJ said 52 were convicted on just the obstruction charge in question — 27 of whom are currently incarcerated, the DOJ said.

'A huge windfall for Donald Trump'

The SCOTUS decision "may be a huge windfall for Donald Trump," Loyola Law School professor Laurie Levenson told Business Insider. But the case against him "has not disappeared," given his other charges.

As for other January 6 defendants, "we are in store for resentencings" — though not necessarily retrials, she said. Given that most defendants were charged with multiple offenses, "the government might just take what they already have."

Former federal prosecutor Neama Rahmani concurred the SCOTUS ruling "is great news for Trump."

"Smith will likely dismiss the obstruction of an official proceeding charges against Trump to avoid the possibility of dismissal and guaranteed delays in the case," Rahmani told BI in an email. "Litigating the obstruction of a proceeding issue unnecessarily is high risk with little reward."

Gene Rossi, a former federal prosecutor who said he represented the first Oath Keeper to breach the Capital, told BI that the ruling is "not a total victory or defeat for either side — but I'd rather be on the defendant's side than the government's."

'There's a lot of fuel behind that conservative fire right now'

Another legal expert told BI the SCOTUS ruling actually benefits the prosecution against Trump, and argued the indictment will hold up.

That's because Trump's fake elector scheme involved submitting fraudulent documents to Congress to stop the certification of the election, New York attorney Richard Hermer-Fried said.

"Trump's actions to stop the certification of the election goes beyond provoking a mob of his supporters to force their way into the Capitol threatening political violence, and, in fact, is a complex scheme involving the manipulation of documents," Hermer-Fried told BI in an email.

On Monday, the Supreme Court will rule on its most consequential January 6 decision: whether Trump, as president, is immune from prosecution.

Given today's fortuitous decision, legal experts surmised the court could rule in his favor.

"The court says it's not playing politics, but the politics are that these decisions are helping Donald Trump," Levenson said. "So I don't think that the court will hesitate to reach a ruling on Monday that helps Donald Trump."

While conservative Justice Amy Coney Barrett dissented from today's decision, Syracuse law professor William Banks told Business Insider that the decision shows "the conservative majority is lining up."

Chevron and other SCOTUS decisions coming down this week "suggests there's a lot of fuel behind that conservative fire right now," Banks said.

• Tim Milgram is a director, cinematographer, and producer in the Los Angeles dance community.
• After learning about the management company 7M's control over some of his peers, Milgram wanted to do something.
• The result is the hit Netflix docuseries "Dancing for the Devil: The 7M TikTok Cult."

One day over dinner in 2019, Tim Milgram got some disappointing but understandable news. Isaiah Shinn, who shot video for his production company and dance studio, told him he'd be parting ways with the company to work full-time for his father, who wanted to "invest in him."

Milgram wasn't surprised that Shinn would depart to join the family business. But he was surprised when he later learned that the family business was 7M Films, a management company that would come to be dubbed "the TikTok cult."

It would take more than two years for Milgram to connect the dots. The director and producer in the Los Angeles dance scene had worked with former 7M members BDash and Konkrete on his own content and had crossed paths with content creators the Wilking sisters at events. So when Melanie Wilking and her parents posted an emotional livestream saying they had lost all contact with Miranda and alleging that she was "no longer in control of her life," Milgram knew he had to do something.

The result is "Dancing for the Devil: The 7M TikTok Cult," a three-part Netflix series that alleges Shekinah Church pastor Robert Shinn lured Los Angeles content creators to his talent management company 7M Films and subjected them to sexual abuse, as well as cult-like behavior, including encouraging content creators to cut ties with family members. (Shinn has denied all allegations against him.)

The series, on which Milgram serves as a co-executive producer, has been wildly successful in spreading the word about 7M: In its first week, it amassed 4.4 million views and was one of the most-watched original series on Netflix, according to Variety.

"I think it's a beautiful thing for us to be able to stand up against something like that," Milgram told Business Insider of creating the doc. "For us in the dance community to be able to stand up and say, 'No, this is not okay for an organization like this to take advantage of dancers' — that is a triumph."

Below, Milgram talks to Business Insider about the documentary's inception and what he hopes will change now that the world has seen it.

What started it all? When did you first think about making a documentary about 7M?

When I saw that video, my heart sank. The Wilkings were so careful not to say the wrong thing. And it seemed like they were genuinely scared. They didn't want to cause any harm, do anything that would push their daughter further away. And seeing how genuine they were in that video… a lot of people in the dance community saw it and started talking to each other. I did some of that as well.

But I also started digging, trying to find records of anything pertaining to Robert's businesses, dealings that might connect him to this thing. At the same time, people on the internet started posting about it. I started putting this all together: Wow, this seems to go really, really far back: This isn't just about 7M management. There has been something going on for multiple decades.

What happened next?

The day after seeing their video, I called the Wilkings. We spoke for about an hour and a half. It was an incredibly emotional experience for me because I felt like I really needed to help them. There was a lot that they didn't and couldn't say in the video. And what I talked to them about brought me to tears. I was pacing around my house, just wiping tears away. I knew after that phone call that it was going to be my mission to try to help them.

You had been well-acquainted with Isaiah and even met the Shinn family.

I knew they were religious. Isaiah came across as a very wholesome, friendly Christian man. I thought he was a very respectful guy. However, when I asked about his faith, I got really vague answers, but I never pushed. I always got a strange vibe when I was [at the Shinn house] working with Isaiah.

What were your first impressions of 7M's content creators?

I thought the videos were great. At first, I was rooting them on, like, wow, these videos are going super viral. And what a successful thing Isaiah was doing, I applauded it. Then, after seeing the [Wilking] video and realizing this whole time that what I'd been watching is not what I thought it was — that was a really visceral thing for me.

What motivated you and your producing partner Briana Frapart to pitch this as a documentary?

Dancers are always being taken advantage of. We're paid late, certain jobs don't have the best working conditions or the best rates. Companies wanting to take advantage of genuinely talented people — this is not something new. This is just a different version that nobody has seen before.

Watching as this organization in an organized manner take advantage of dancers, doing what it did to their families — I couldn't let that be. I've been in Los Angeles for almost 14 years now. I've pursued dance professionally, I opened my own dance studio. I've been filming dancers the majority of the time I've been here, and I've created an immense amount of content. I've seen these situations, heard all these stories, and been in situations where things felt unfair. When I saw that video, I felt like I wasn't just trying to help their family. I felt like I was trying to help my family.

How did you approach the Wilking family and Melanie to convince them to participate?

It was a long process of maintaining a relationship with them. At first it was just me, then it was Jessica [Acevedo, an executive producer]. It was building a foundation of trust that we were going to handle this with the utmost care, that we weren't out to just make some money or make a thing about their family to try to exploit them. Because that was absolutely not the case.

The first five months were brutal. We reached out to friends of 7M members, as well as choreographers who worked with them. A lot of people were scared; they were hesitant to comment or be involved. Nobody wanted to take the risk. And we didn't really know the details of what was happening. We were digging in the dark, just trying to figure out, what really is this thing?

We needed [the Wilkings] to know that all of us, including them, were in alignment on what we wanted the outcome to be. And because of the nature of the situation that Miranda was in, it's very hard for any family — not just the Wilkings — to know what the right thing is to do in that situation. So yeah, it took time.

Have you talked to Isaiah since he left?

We remained in contact a little bit at the beginning of 2020, but we just stopped talking after that.

What do you hope for him?

Ultimately, Isaiah is a victim whether or not he benefits from being in the business with his dad. Isaiah is somebody who I used to call a friend, and hopefully can call a friend again. I would genuinely love for that to happen.

What do you hope the series' impact will be?

I want this organization to stop what it's doing. I believe that there is a future where every victim of this thing comes out of it and finds their own path in life. To me, that's the most important thing. Seeing this at No. 1 on Netflix was a surreal moment of some victory. When people say congratulations, there's a bit of bittersweet sorrow because I want the impact of the documentary, which might not come right away. And hopefully the impact is that people put pressure on this organization and put pressure on Robert. That's the only way that any kind of change is going to happen.

But at the moment of this interview, Miranda is still in the organization. That was initially the driving force for me to want to get involved in pursuing this. It was not to get a Netflix documentary. It was the outcome that still hasn't happened yet. So when I hear Congratulations, it's No. 1, that's awesome. But I can't fully accept it. I feel a certain sadness.

I'm not a documentary filmmaker. My origin is filming dance, being a dancer, and providing a physical space for people to train and to find community. It's not about my career as a filmmaker or as a producer. It's about leaving a legacy of some sort of positive change in our dance community.

This interview has been edited and condensed for length and clarity.

• Skytrax named Qatar Airways the world's best airline for business class for the 11th year.
• Introduced in 2017, the QSuite sports industry-first double beds and fan-favorite sliding doors.
• Qatar is expected to unveil an updated "QSuite 2.0" later this year.

Every year, the aviation ranking website Skytrax compiles and analyzes thousands of customer satisfaction surveys to determine the best of the best among some 350 airlines.

Qatar Airways stole Singapore Airlines' crown as the 2024 world's best airline this year. It was also, for the 11th year in a row, named as the best airline for business class.

The win is no surprise given Qatar's reputation for luxury at the front of the plane.

Qatar revolutionized premium flying when it introduced its famous QSuite, its first suite-style business class with fully closing doors. Several cabin layouts are possible, too, including first-of-its-kind double beds and quad-seating.

QSuite was an industry-changing design that raised the bar for premium seating worldwide.

Other airlines, like Air India and British Airways, have since adopted their own hotel-like cabins and multi-person seats.

Still, it appears travelers prefer the original — and Qatar is evolving it even further with the unveiling of its "QSuite 2.0" later this year.

Qatar has equipped all of its Airbus A350-1000s, some of its Airbus A350-900s, and most of its Boeing 777s with the QSuite.

Qatar's narrowbody planes don't have QSuite, nor do its Boeing 787 Dreamliners or Airbus A380s, though the mammoth quad-jets have an inflight lounge and bar.

Without major changes, QSuite wouldn't fit on the narrower Dreamliners, so Qatar created a different version. The 787s sport a 1×2×1 business class with sliding doors and similar soft products but without the QSuite's versatility.

The seat comes with the regularly expected business-class perks, including a giant television, power, gourmet meals, and storage.

QSuite food is rated the region's best, and it won Skytrax's 2024 Best Business Class Onboard Catering in the Middle East award.

Qatar's business class is also staffed with specially-trained flight attendants, though the airline's entire crew earned praise this year for being named the best cabin crew in the Middle East by Skytrax.

Its 1x2x1 configuration means there are no middle seats and every passenger can get up as they wish.

This freedom has become the standard in airline business class, though a few outliers, like Air India and Germany's Lufthansa, still fly some cramped planes without direct aisle access.

The latter, however, has recently introduced a new and improved "Allegris" business class on its widebody planes.

However, the seat is award-winning for its convertible beds, quad-seating, and privacy.

In order, Singapore, All Nippon Airways, Emirates, and Cathay Pacific were the other top five winners behind Qatar.

Delta was number eight, while United was number 17. American didn't make the list.

Qatar's QSuite was the first airline business class with a double bed.

The bed is created by combining two lie-flat seats into one, and closing both privacy doors creates a small pod — making it perfect for families and couples.

Big beds on airplanes are rare, meaning Qatar has a special edge helping it draw in customers willing to pay for the space.

Singapore has refreshed its Airbus A380 business class with seats that combine into a double bed. It also offers double beds in its first-class suite, and Etihad Airways does in its three-room "The Residence."

Cabin designer Ameco was shortlisted for the Crystal Cabin Awards for its concept of a double bed — but as a sleep option for economy.

The QSuite's versatility also draws customers, especially since it uniquely accommodates up to four people in one conjoined space.

Qatar has several seating configurations.

Next to the window, there are front-facing and rear-facing single seats. The center section has double suites and four-person spaces, though they can also be used individually and blocked off by raising a middle divider.

The quad-seating is achieved by dropping the partition between two rear-facing and two front-facing center seats. It's good for families or colleagues traveling together who need to work, meet, dine, play games, or watch a movie together.

This multi-person seating has gained traction, with more business class buddy seats popping up across the industry.

JetBlue Airways has offered a second seat in its Mint Suites for years, while Lufthansa, Virgin Atlantic Airways, and German leisure carrier Condor also offer the option.

Air New Zealand is adding a companion seat to its new Business Premier Suites cabin launching next year.

Sliding doors like Qatar's have become the most noticeable new business-class trend.

Doors revolutionized privacy. JetBlue Airways and Delta Air Lines were among the first to offer this feature when their Mint and Delta One suites launched in 2014 and 2017, respectively.

Delta is the only Big 3 airline to offer doors in business class, but American will join once its new door-equipped Flagship Suites debut later this year. United's Polaris business class remains door-free.

Carriers, including Air France, British Airways, All Nippon Airways, and Malaysia Airlines, have all added privacy doors.

The list continues: Air India, Lufthansa, Virgin Atlantic, and Cathay Pacific Airways have added the perk.

Notably, five-star carriers Singapore and Emirates lack sliding doors in business but offer them in first-class suites.

For US-originating travelers looking for a QSuite, Qatar flies it between Doha and seven cities.

According to Qatar's website, the QSuite flies nonstop to New York-JFK, Chicago O'Hare, Houston's George Bush Intercontinental Airport, Washington Dulles, Los Angeles, Dallas/Fort Worth, and Boston.

• 47.9 million people watched the debate across all networks.
• CNN may have been the host, but the network didn't have the most television viewers — Fox News did.
• Viewership is down from prior years, as a record 84 million watched the Trump-Clinton debate in 2016.

Last night's presidential debate attracted 47.9 million viewers across networks, according to early Nielsen numbers, making it the most-watched non-sporting event of the year. Still, audience numbers paled in comparison to previous years.

Though CNN hosted the debate, the network didn't boast the largest television audience — Fox News claimed that prize, with 8.8 million viewers compared to CNN's 8.7 million. ABC News also pulled 8.7 million eyeballs, while MSNBC drew nearly 4.0 million. A total of 22 networks streamed the event, which is widely being considered a disaster for President Biden.

The debate also received more than 30 million views on CNN's platforms and YouTube, according to the network.

Though the viewership may seem impressive, it marks a steep drop from past presidential elections. In 2016, a record 84 million people tuned into the debate between Hillary Clinton and Donald Trump. And 73 million viewers watched the first Biden-Trump match up four years ago.

Some view the lower viewership as an indication of Americans' general disinterestedness in politics. Voters are more disengaged with this election than they have been in nearly 20 years, according to an article in the Columbia Journalism Review.

On Twitter, the journalist Brian Stelter said that the television ratings "are also further proof of political FATIGUE in America. Many people are tired and tuned out."

"That portends turnout falling and maybe even crashing," Jonathan Martin, a senior political columnist at Politico, tweeted in response.

Given the reactions to Biden's performance, the relatively lackluster viewership may have been a blessing.

• These 12 stars have decided not to publicly define their sexuality.
• Ariana Grande said she doesn't "feel the need" to clarify, while Harry Styles said it's "personal."
• Billie Eilish, Lily-Rose Depp, Joshua Bassett, and more have similarly declined to use labels.

Billie Eilish said of her sexuality: "Who fucking cares?"

Eilish has only publicly dated men, though she spoke openly about her attraction to women during a 2023 interview with Variety.

 After Eilish's revelation sparked headlines, the Grammy winner said she thought it was "obvious," adding, "I just don't really believe in it. I'm just like, 'Why can't we just exist?'"

The "Hit Me Hard and Soft" singer also declared that "nobody should be pressured" to come out or label their sexuality.

"Who fucking cares?" she told Rolling Stone. "The whole world suddenly decided who I was, and I didn't get to say anything or control any of it."

"Dude, I've known people that don't know their sexuality, or feel comfortable with it, until they're in their forties, fifties, sixties," Eilish continued. "It takes a while to find yourself, and I think it's really unfair, the way that the internet bullies you into talking about who you are and what you are."

Lizzo said she doesn't "ascribe to just one thing."

The "Everybody's Gay" singer took an indefinite approach to gender and sexuality in a 2018 interview with Billboard.

"I personally don't ascribe to just one thing. I cannot sit here right now and tell you I'm just one thing," she said. "That's why the colors for LGBTQ+ are a rainbow! Because there's a spectrum, and right now we try to keep it black and white. That's just not working for me."

More recently, Lizzo described monogamy as "a little claustrophobic" because she doesn't "want any rules" when it comes to love.

"That doesn't mean I'm out here fucking and sucking and ducking. It doesn't mean he is either," she said, referring to her boyfriend Myke Wright. "It just means that there are no expectations, and that way, the love gets to just be the main event."

Joshua Bassett said he's "anti-coming out in the sense that there's no need to."

Bassett clarified that he "wasn't joking" when he said he was attracted to Harry Styles, but also told GQ that he's not "rushing to a conclusion" about his sexuality.

"There are plenty of letters in the alphabet," he said. "Sometimes your letter changes, sometimes you try a different one, other times you realize you're not what you thought you were, or maybe you always knew. All of these can be true."

"I'm happy to be a part of the LGBTQ+ community because they embrace all," he continued. "Don't let anyone tell you love isn't love. They're the ones who probably need it the most."

Bebe Rexha said her sexuality is "fluid" and she doesn't care about gender.

Rexha opened up about her sexuality in a 2021 interview with Gay Times, saying she's attracted to "whoever inspires me."

"It's just so hard because everybody wants to put people in boxes and I don't like boxes, as you can tell with my music," she said, adding that she believes sexuality is a "scale."

"Until I find 'the one,' I can't just say what I am. I just want to find someone I love and who loves me — and I don't care if that's a boy or a girl," she said.

Shay Mitchell said she's "never going to label" herself.

Mitchell, who played the lesbian character Emily Fields on "Pretty Little Liars," opened up to Cosmopolitan about her fluid approach to dating.

"When I started, people were like, 'What are you?' I'm like, right now I'm dating a guy.
 I don't know what it's going to be in three years," she said.

"You love who you love. Black, white, polka-dot, that's what my dad always said. I'm never going to label myself," she continued. "I could be 50 and dating a woman and then what? I said I was straight and now I'm not?"

When asked about his sexuality, Tyler Posey said, "I just wanna be me."

Posey told fans that he's had sexual experiences with men during a livestream on OnlyFans. This inspired tabloids to describe him as "pansexual," which Posey didn't necessarily agree with.

"I didn't label that. The kids, the fans, or whoever wrote those articles labeled that," he told Variety. "I thought that was really interesting that it just broke down this wall that I didn't feel like I put up, but it was easier for me to just be honest about all that stuff."

The "Teen Wolf" star also told Zach Sang that he's "sexually fluid," but isn't committed to a specific term.

"I've never defined myself. I don't think I want to put a label on myself 'cause somebody's going to get mad," he said. "Whatever. I'm just me. I've been with dudes, I've been with girls."

Tyler, the Creator has written songs about men and women but never clarified his sexuality.

Tyler, the Creator seemed to come out as queer on "I Ain't Got Time," a single from his 2017 album "Flower Boy" ("Next line will have 'em like 'woah' / I've been kissing white boys since 2004").

The album's seventh track "Garden Shed" has also been interpreted as a metaphor for being closeted ("Truth is, since a youth kid, thought it was a phase / Thought it'd be like the phrase 'poof,' gone / But it's still goin' on").

On the heels of his 2019 Grammy-winning album "Igor," which explores an emotionally turbulent love affair with a man, GQ asked him about his sexuality.

"I like girls — I just end up fucking their brother every time," he said.

In response to a question about his sexuality, Frank Ocean said, "You can't feel a label."

Much like Tyler (his former Odd Future bandmate), Ocean has written songs about relationships with both men and women. His debut album, "Channel Orange," was an homage to his first love.

"I was 19 years old. He was too," Ocean revealed on Tumblr.

"Back then, my mind would wander to the women I had been with, the ones I cared for and thought I was in love with," he wrote. "I reminisced about the sentimental songs I enjoyed when I was a teenager.. The ones I played when I experienced a girlfriend for the first time. I realized they were written in a language I did not yet speak."

However, when GQ asked in 2012 if Ocean considers himself bisexual, the singer declined to answer.

"You can move to the next question. I'll respectfully say that life is dynamic and comes along with dynamic experiences, and the same sentiment that I have towards genres of music, I have towards a lot of labels and bos and shit," he said.

"As a writer, as a creator, I'm giving you my experiences," he continued. "But just take what I give you. You ain't got to pry beyond that. I'm giving you what I feel like you can feel. The other shit, you can't feel. You can't feel a box. You can't feel a label. Don't get caught up in that shit."

Keke Palmer said she's "not bound in my sexuality."

In 2015, Palmer released a music video for her single "I Don't Belong To You," which sees her leaving a man's bed to meet up with a woman.

"The video was to represent the young woman today — it's not the traditional woman anymore — and not the specifics of 'Am I gay? Am I straight? Am I bi?'" she told People.

"I'm making the rules for myself, and I don't have to be stuck down to one label I don't feel the need to define nothing to nobody, because I'm always changing," she continued. "Why say that I'm this or that when I might not be tomorrow? I'm gonna follow my own feelings and my own heart."

More recently, the "Nope" actor explained her fluid approach in an interview with Them.

"I'm not bound in my sexuality. I'm just doing me," she said. "I think that hopefully people are coming around to that reality when it comes to the queer community. Why the hell do I need to declare to you who's laying in my bed?"

Lily-Rose Depp said that her sexuality is "not set in stone" and "not anybody's business."

After Depp posed for iO Tillett Wright's Self Evident Truths photography project, which "exists to spread awareness and understanding about a broader spectrum of human sexuality," she expressed discomfort with the public's reaction.

"A lot of people took it as me coming out, but that's not what I was trying to do. I was literally doing it just to say that you don't have to label your sexuality," she said during an interview with Nylon.

"You don't have to label yourself, because it's not set in stone. It's so fluid and there's so much pressure on kids to label themselves and say, 'This is what I am, this is what I like.' I was just trying to say that it's unnecessary," she continued.

The star of HBO's "The Idol" added: "It's not anybody's business, because I am going to date whoever I'm going to date."

Depp is currently in a relationship with 070 Shake, a rapper and singer who shares Depp's unlabeled approach to sexuality.

"I don't really identify myself as queer or gay or anything," she told Pitchfork. "I just like girls."

Harry Styles described questions about his sexuality as "outdated."

Styles has nodded to queerness throughout his solo career. He released his liberation anthem "Lights Up" on National Coming Out Day, wrote a song about disappointing boyfriends, and starred as a closeted gay man in the 2022 drama "My Policeman."

More recently, he described his Love on Tour set list as "sparkly bi music."

Styles has also insisted that he's not "sprinkling in nuggets of sexual ambiguity to try and be more interesting."

"I've been really open with it with my friends, but that's my personal experience; it's mine," he told Better Homes & Gardens.

"The whole point of where we should be heading, which is toward accepting everybody and being more open, is that it doesn't matter," he continued, "and it's about not having to label everything, not having to clarify what boxes you're checking."

Ariana Grande said she doesn't "feel the need" to label herself.

Grande, who has long been an outspoken ally of the LGBTQ community, sparked speculation about her own sexuality when she released the 2019 single "Monopoly."

"I like women and men," she sings in the post-chorus.

The song was cowritten by Grande's close friend and collaborator Victoria Monét, who is openly bisexual.

When a fan asked Monét on Instagram if Grande is also bisexual, the songwriter replied, "She said what she said."

Grande later chimed in on Twitter and defended her decision not to "label" herself.

"i haven't before and still don't feel the need to now," Grande wrote. "which is OK."

• The Education Deparment is placing 3 million student-loan borrowers on administrative forbearance.
• It's a result of recent court rulings that blocked key parts of the SAVE plan, including debt relief and lower bills.
• The department will also be taking down online applications for income-driven repayment plans to avoid inaccurate information.

After federal courts blocked key parts of President Joe Biden's new repayment plan, the Education Department announced additional steps to help borrowers during this time.

On Monday, two separate rulings from federal judges in Kansas and Missouri placed preliminary injunctions on key provisions in the SAVE income-driven repayment plan. These included blocking a shorter timeline for student-loan forgiveness and new provisions set to go into effect on July 1, including lower monthly payments for undergraduate borrowers.

The Justice Department appealed both decisions and while courts have yet to make a final decision on the fate of the SAVE plan, relief is temporarily blocked. An Education Department spokesperson told Business Insider that as a result of the rulings, the department will place about 3 million borrowers with payment amounts greater than $0 on administrative forbearance, during which they will not owe any payments, and interest will not accrue.

Additionally, the department is taking down all online applications for income-driven repayment plans and loan consolidations to ensure borrowers do not receive inaccurate information during this time. These changes are expected to take about four to six weeks, and borrowers can continue to submit paper applications for income-driven repayment programs or SAVE, which servicers will continue to process.

"President Biden, Vice President Harris, and Secretary Cardona remain committed to fixing a broken student loan system and making college more affordable for more Americans," a department spokesperson said in a statement. "They will not stop vigorously defending the SAVE Plan, the most affordable repayment plan in history, and will continue to fight for this long-overdue relief, no matter how many times Republican elected officials and their allies try to stop them."

The department will directly communicate these changes to impacted borrowers in the coming days.

The lawsuits in question were filed earlier this year by a group of GOP state attorneys general who argued the relief through the SAVE plan was an overreach of Biden's authority and harmed their states' tax revenues.

Both judges ruled that elements of the SAVE plan that have already gone into effect can remain in place, but any forthcoming relief — like continued batches of borrowers qualifying for loan forgiveness — cannot be implemented as the legal process progresses.

Following the rulings, some advocates and Democratic lawmakers called on the Education Department to place impacted borrowers on forbearance or implement another form of relief, given the confusion that could result from the injunctions.

"This damning and harmful lawsuit will only throw struggling borrowers further into chaos, deny them the student debt cancellation they demand and deserve, and prevent them from purchasing homes, growing their families, and so much more," Rep. Ayanna Pressley said in a Tuesday statement.
"The Biden Administration must continue to take immediate action to ensure borrowers receive the student debt cancellation they were promised."