At Parse.ly, we’re used to measuring the impact of media with metrics. Page views, shares, and engaged minutes are our usual currency for understanding how audiences respond to the content they read, watch, and use every day.  For some journalists and creatives, adding numbers to the equation removes the often inexplicable emotional reaction that consumers  have to content. They want to think of audience members as “profoundly interested” rather than “engaged for an average of three minutes.”

Interestingly,  the Parse.ly team  sees numbers and statistics as the exact opposite: we use data to invite the author and the audience to share in the formerly off-screen experience of the reader. We want to connect producers to the people who interact with their stories — the same people who feel enraged, joyous, confused, inspired, comforted, challenged, and impacted by the media they consume. Analytics is a way  to amplify the editorial pulse, not to weaken it.

Beyond working to measure media, we consume a huge amount of it every day. A few special experiences stuck  with us. Watch as Parse.ly team members reflect on the media that they find most memorable, including the way it made them feel and the reasons why.

Sometimes, the best way to feel a reaction to a piece of media is just to feel it, and know that others are being moved by it in incalculable ways.

Content Featured in this Video

The  igloo Airbnb in Brooklyn (New York Magazine)

Ovia, the pregnancy health app

Kelsey Breseman’s extended metaphor for coding (Medium)

A polarizing reflection on the Orlando shooting (New York Post)

The new app bringing you news with personality  (Quartz)

The adorable life of Sophie Lee in 90 seconds (Google)

An iPhone 5 commercial that inspired us to take cooler photos (Apple)

One of Geico’s most infamous commercials

OKCupid’s self-critical report on racism in dating apps (OkTrends)