Have you ever stumbled upon an hourlong online video of someone folding napkins? Or maybe crinkling paper, sorting a thimble collection or pretending to give the viewer an ear exam? They’re called ...

Campaign Trail is our analysis of some of the best new creative efforts from the marketing world. View past columns in the archives here. When hair salon franchise Sport Clips wanted to promote its ...

I don’t personally know YouTube ASMR host who calls herself Slight Sounds, 25, but for the next 26 minutes she will glow on my dark computer screen like friends and family often do when I’m on ...

I’m sitting on a futon in a stranger’s apartment with my friend Ashley. In front of us, Melinda Lauw—a slender, wide-eyed Singaporean woman—is crouched in a squat, holding a small flickering candle, ...

“It’s time for your lice check,” a woman who goes by “Ms. K” whispers directly into my ear as she starts running her fingers into my scalp and through each strand of hair. I’m in a dark room, Eastern ...

Over the past few years, YouTube has exploded with videos aimed at making viewers feel relaxed, tingly, and even sleepy — a sensation known as autonomous sensory meridian response (ASMR). Within the ...