White House to Use Social Media Influencers to Promote Biden Agenda, Target Young Voters

The influencers may receive their own briefing room.

QUICK FACTS:
  • Biden administration officials told Axios that four White House staffers are focusing their efforts on using various social media influencers to call for support ahead of Biden’s likely re-election 2024 campaign.
  • The move comes as votes from younger generations are critical for the success of the Democratic Party.
  • Leading the effort is Rob Flaherty, an assistant to the president, who is considered to hold the same rank as the White House communications director and press secretary.
  • White House Deputy Chief of Staff Jen O’Malley Dillon stated, “We’re trying to reach young people, but also moms who use different platforms to get information and climate activists and people whose main way of getting information is digital.”
  • Harry Sisson, a TikTok influencer known for giving news updates and one of the influencers who will tout the Biden administration, asked the White House if he and other influencers could receive press briefing passes.
  • Sisson then told Axios that the White House was “very responsive” to the request.
PAST WHITE HOUSE UTILIZATION OF INFLUENCERS:
  • TikTok influencer with 13.8 million followers Daniel Mac was invited to the Detriot Auto Show in September 2022. There, he asked Biden what he does for a living, a question Mac is known for on his platform.
  • “Well I’m married to Jill Biden and I make sure we’re making a lot more electric vehicles in America,” Biden responded.
  • The White House also invited drag queens and LGBTQ influencers to attend a same-sex marriage bill celebration.
  • More than 20 influencers from several social media platforms received invitations to attend a briefing on the Inflation Reduct Act.
  • “I got a magical email from the digital communications team at the White House saying they were going to be doing essentially a creator briefing for the Inflation Reduction Act,” said the host of “Under the Desk News” TikTok influencer V Spehar.
  • “Honestly, I don’t care what side of the aisle you’re on, when the president and the vice president walk in the room, it’s a cool moment,” Spehar commented.
BACKGROUND:
  • 248 former federal agency employees have gone on to work for various social media platforms, an investigation from the Daily Caller found.
  • Dozens of those formerly employed by the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) were hired at Twitter to work various “security” jobs.
  • The majority of the former federal employees’ hiring occurred between 2017-2022, with some employees leaving after Elon Musk acquired Twitter.

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