Position Paper 3: Social Media

 

Donald Trump and Social Media: 

Donald Trump is a rather interesting man whether you support him or not I think we both can agree with that statement. From him being known as the hard hitting business man on The Apprentice to running the country. Now many interest groups have assisted the president in his re-election campaign. Social media is evolving constantly and new platforms are building popularity of candidates. Certain interest groups have also aided in candidates like Donald Trump running for re-election. Many interest groups have learned quickly that large donations aren't necessarily that way to go when trying to work with President Trump. Instead they can do this by personally enriching the president for example, holding events at venues he still owns and profits from. By hosting these major events at his businesses these interest groups gain access to exclusive government officials. Now this may not seem like it plays into the social media aspect but it truly does when these interest groups are uploading pictures and promoting these events on their social media platforms. 

It comes to no surprise that President Donald Trump's approach to social media can be in poor taste. He often seems to post with no filter to platforms like Twitter. Just recently Twitter flagged multiple Trump tweets that violated their guidelines and policies. Accusations are being thrown around that he personally targeted a Twitter employee and threatened to 'shut down' social media. He has over 80 million Twitter followers and has been an active user since 2009. However, he posts similar posts to his Facebook but they already stated they would not be removing them from their platform. Trump's overall approach to his social media may not be for everyone but he does see success in his tactics. His team are constantly using social media as a political marketing tool. Influence is everything in the times we are in many young new voters are constantly checking social media and allowing this to influence their political preferences. Diggit Magazine has labeled this the year of the 'Twitter-based presidency' and breaks down Trump's keys to social media success. This article breaks down how the internet breaks down and politicized propaganda to be more personalized spreading like wildfire. "The globalization of ideas is a necessary step for success of Trump's campaign, as its ability to rapidly and constantly connect with the American public is the single most important reason for his popularity and ultimate success; in fact, it is by the political nature of social media sites that Trumps' popularity and public influence could grow so rapidly, through the nascent internet democracy." In the world of social media it all comes down to views, likes, reposting, etc.. ultimately this is what leads to social media ideas reaching new groups. Which brings up the idea that political discourse on social media is largely done by citizens at large ultimately meaning they decide what political ideas or candidate is worthy of popularity. During Trump's first election campaign he may have unknowingly changed the way politicians campaign in a social media driven age. His most recent Twitter uploads have been short video snippets addressing political issues and his opposing candidate. Along with a few retweets of Trump support parades happening around the country including a post from Barstool Sports showing a small group of Amish citizens displaying Trump flags on their transportation. Although President Trump has been quite busy traveling it seems that his social media posts are not getting their usual numbers of interactions. Who is to blame in this situation the man himself or a poor marketing strategy from his team. 

Regardless of who you are rooting for one has to admit that President Trump has ramped up his presence in social media. Gathering celebrity supporters to openly post about their choice to vote for him and the constant stream of posts from the younger generation. Twitter erupted in negative comments and posts when famous rapper Lil Wayne posted a photo of him with the President. He posted a caption along with the photo stating "Just had a great meeting with @realdonaldtrump @potus besides what he's done so far with criminal reform, the platinum plan is going to give the community real ownership. He listened to what we had to say today and assured he will and can get it done." Once posting this Twitter exploded with users saying the infamous rapper should be cancelled for supporting our current POTUS. The question at the end of the day is are these social media posts and alliances enough to boost this president's deficit in the current race.