WASHINGTON — At first glance, a 78-year-old former president and a 23-year-old Internet personality might seem to have little in common.
Donald Trump admitted in a recent appearance on Adin Ross’ show that he only “sort of” understood livestreaming, the practice of posting live video on social media. But he told Ross he appreciated that the show was part of “the new wave” of information — and he credited his youngest son, 18-year-old Barron, for helping him raise him.
“My son told me about you, and they told me how big he is, and he said, ‘Dad, he’s really big,’” Trump said during their two-hour conversation.
Trump’s campaign has fully embraced the bravado-filled, macho, often antagonizing online spaces popular with a subset of younger men on livestreaming platforms like Twitch and Kick, as well as YouTube, TikTok and Instagram. The former president appeared with influencer Logan Paul, another personality Trump said was a favorite of his youngest son, and spoke on X with billionaire Elon Musk, a figure revered by many younger conservatives.
Computer scientist and podcaster Lex Fridman, who also has a large audience of mainly younger men, said he will soon host an episode with Trump.
Both Trump and Vice President Kamala Harris compete for voters who increasingly get most of their news from nontraditional sources. Trump’s campaign staffers talk to conservative influencers about potential topics and guests, while Harris’ campaign about 200 content creators accredited to the recent Democratic National Convention, where some received free hotel stays and other perks from affiliated liberal groups to be in Chicago.
“This election is a time where influencers have really evolved from being a news source to a place where campaigns have real outreach programs and are almost treating them as segments of the media,” said Tammy Gordon, a digital communications strategist. “And that’s one of the really cool things about the evolution of political advertising. And the scary thing is that you can slice and dice the electorate so finely that you’re feeding different messages to different places.
“That’s both a cool aspect of technology and a scary aspect of political advertising,” she added.
It’s unclear how much the Trump campaign’s forays into online media will boost his campaign. The same social media platforms are filled with content creators who are highly critical of the former president and who go viral via the same algorithms as Ross and other pro-Trump personalities.
But Trump’s meme-cultivating is in some ways an evolution of the strategy he used to bolster his image as a playboy, businessman and mogul, an image that helped him become a New York tabloid darling in the 1980s and ’90s, a TV personality on “The Apprentice” in the 2000s and, ultimately, president in the 2010s.
The campaign now hopes to use Trump’s celebrity and bombast to gain attention online and in traditional media in ways that implicitly push his message to audiences that might not pay attention to political news. It sees men under 50, many of whom are black and Hispanic, as key demographics for Trump to tap into.
Younger Americans, communities of color And immigrant communities are more likely than older or white Americans to get their news online or through social media.
During his appearance with Trump, Ross toned down his normally provocative personality and traded in the topics he normally discusses, such as video games, sports and women, for Trump’s foreign policy and immigration talks.
Ross gave Trump a Rolex watch and then walked him into a Tesla Cybertruck, which featured an image of the former president’s face after the July assassination attempt at a rally, along with images of a bald eagle and an American flag. The two then danced outside the truck.
Ross is an internet personality who rose to fame in 2020 by livestreaming video games with now-professional basketball player Bronny James, son of NBA legend LeBron James, and later appearing with rappers such as Lil Uzi Vert. He became known for making provocative comments about sexuality and women in his livestreams.
His stunts have regularly earned him hundreds of thousands of mostly male audiences, but have also earned him suspensions across platforms for repeated use of insults and other infractions. In 2023, he was permanently banned from Twitch for what the platform called “hateful conduct.” He has increasingly embraced right-wing political views as he develops friendships with figures such as Andrew Tate, a controversial influencer who recently placed under house arrest over new allegations of human trafficking of minors.
The presidential campaign is reaching its peak at a time when many young men, especially those without college degrees and struggling economically, are seen as a challenge. Conservative politicians and internet personalities have tried to address a host of grievances.
Solomon Brent is one of four men who post daily reaction videos to their YouTube channel, CartierFamily, offering their Gen Z, black, right-wing perspective on the day’s political news to more than 1 million subscribers with hyperbolic headlines and casual conversation. They poke fun at former CNN anchor Don Lemon, praise conservative commentators who “destroy” and “erase” liberal politicians and activists, and mix their banter with day-to-day debates about relationships, sports, music, and other ostensibly nonpolitical topics.
“I think they just see our raw, honest opinions. We just pull out a clip that we saw happen that day and we just react to it,” Brent said. “We stay very realistic about pretty much everything.”
The videos appeal to an audience that is predominantly male and under 40, the group said, citing YouTube analysis.
After building a following online with their videos, the group behind CartierFamily met with top Trump advisers at a Turning Point USA event in 2021. They’ve since “connected some of the dots for us,” Brent said, with political connections, amplifying content and highlighting stories to discuss with their audience.
The Trump campaign declined to disclose how many conservative online creators it partners with in a manner similar to CartierFamily.
“Our strategy has always been to meet voters where they are, and that means going into nontraditional media spaces,” said Janiyah Thomas, the Trump campaign’s Black Media Director. “Black podcasters are having a significant impact on this election, and it’s important to use diverse voices to amplify our message to the Black community.”
Meanwhile, Harris’ presidential bid has sparked an explosion of organic online engagement that the campaign is looking to capitalize on, particularly on platforms popular with younger Americans and people of color, such as Instagram, TikTok and YouTube.
The campaign has been paying close attention to Harris’ online footprint, responding with its own content that reflects her newfound online support. Creators have also been welcomed by the broader progressive movement; multiple creators confirmed that liberal groups closely aligned with Democrats offered perks like paid flights, parties and hotel rooms to cover the Democratic National Convention in Chicago.
Harris is also leveraging the White House’s longstanding partnership with influencers to promote his agenda and hear their interests.
“I think there’s a lot to criticize about (Biden), but the Republican Party doesn’t have the same level of support or reach from creators compared to that,” said Kahlil Greene, a TikTok influencer who makes U.S. history videos that often go viral across platforms. “If I had to give them a review, I would definitely give them a positive review. And I think they’ve really pioneered a new way of engaging with the audience, where no matter what you think about the details that you can criticize, you have to give them credit for that.”
