Digital and social are replacing TV as America's dominant medium. Politics has now followed, and it's the biggest reason Trump won. Democrats must evolve now - with 21st Century digital candidates.
Media generally played a large role in defeating Kamala. Wapo and NYT relentlessly normalized Trump and denigrated Harris. They minimized Trump's mental impairment and his malevolence
And then there is now the problem of Meta and Insta, joined and entangled with X and TikTok, with an authoritarian take-over of content, excising and eliminating some subject threads or links, unless they pander to trump/musk/the far right or Republicanism, critical of the left. References to Democratic subject matter/writers are 'disappeared' from their sites. Ads appear; strange linking to others' FB Meta feeds.. Denial of the interests of half the population. They are tweaking their algorithms so Progressives, LGTBQ people, need not try to exist there. They will be banished. So while Democrats look for social media platforms on which to reside, the big ones have been bastardized by their billionaire owners. I thought that Harris had a lot of good work being done on TikTok especially, which reached younger voters. Time to regroup and choose their platforms carefully, while they dream that Mark Cuban will create and fund something new for them. Which may happen.
Great article Tristan! A lot of information, and food for thought. Just where do we go from here? Social media is shifting, and if TikTok stays it will probably remain the best source to get information out. Videos absolutely are where it's at, and you are absolutely right about extemporaneous vs scripted speech. When I spoke before and audience I always walked in with a written speech but soon took off on my own. When you are passionate about something people pay attention. If I were younger I would do some myself. Nobody pays much attention to an "old" lady. lol
Thank you for helping me understand the effects of the digital revolution, how it affected the election and how we need to move forward with that info. Brilliant
This is an outstanding piece. I was born in 1963 and straddle the line between boomer and gen x. I see both sides but have adapted to the digital age. What I struggle with is how authenticity in the socials is blurred by lies. Where does that take us when electing people to run the nation?
Media didn't make Trump win. Elon and the Russians did...
Elon and Russia used social media, especially TikTok, and X, very effectively.
Media generally played a large role in defeating Kamala. Wapo and NYT relentlessly normalized Trump and denigrated Harris. They minimized Trump's mental impairment and his malevolence
You are assuming that the votes counted were actually what were cast. I'm asserting that Democrat votes were tossed and/or counted for Republicans.
https://www.thenumbersarewrong2024.com/
And then there is now the problem of Meta and Insta, joined and entangled with X and TikTok, with an authoritarian take-over of content, excising and eliminating some subject threads or links, unless they pander to trump/musk/the far right or Republicanism, critical of the left. References to Democratic subject matter/writers are 'disappeared' from their sites. Ads appear; strange linking to others' FB Meta feeds.. Denial of the interests of half the population. They are tweaking their algorithms so Progressives, LGTBQ people, need not try to exist there. They will be banished. So while Democrats look for social media platforms on which to reside, the big ones have been bastardized by their billionaire owners. I thought that Harris had a lot of good work being done on TikTok especially, which reached younger voters. Time to regroup and choose their platforms carefully, while they dream that Mark Cuban will create and fund something new for them. Which may happen.
Excellent . Populism in the Digital Age. Really helpful information. So different. No wonder the idiot won.
Thank-you for writing this! It is indeed an extraordinary piece of writing and analysis!
Great article Tristan! A lot of information, and food for thought. Just where do we go from here? Social media is shifting, and if TikTok stays it will probably remain the best source to get information out. Videos absolutely are where it's at, and you are absolutely right about extemporaneous vs scripted speech. When I spoke before and audience I always walked in with a written speech but soon took off on my own. When you are passionate about something people pay attention. If I were younger I would do some myself. Nobody pays much attention to an "old" lady. lol
Bill Vlinton was the last president of the 20th century. This is the 21st century.
I agree democrates need to get out of thier ivory towers and get on social media and do pod cast interviews.
Thank you for helping me understand the effects of the digital revolution, how it affected the election and how we need to move forward with that info. Brilliant
This is an outstanding piece. I was born in 1963 and straddle the line between boomer and gen x. I see both sides but have adapted to the digital age. What I struggle with is how authenticity in the socials is blurred by lies. Where does that take us when electing people to run the nation?
I’m excited you’re sharing your article with The Big Picture! I read their Substack too!
Excellent article and on-point analysis. Bravo!
This is a must-read
Wonderful piece!
Couldn’t agree with you more.