08/15/2024 --axios
Memes — viral snippets of a cultural moment — are defining the 2024 presidential election cycle.Why it matters: In a fragmented media landscape, memes still find a way to transcend constituencies, shape narratives and forge connection.State of play: Since launching her presidential bid last month, Vice President Kamala Harris has been the benefactor of "brat summer," "femininomenon," celebrity content and coconut memes.Donald Trump supporters, meanwhile, have circulated the fist-pump image following July's assassination attempt and embraced Hulk Hogan's viral "Trumpmania" moment from the RNC.💭 Eleanor's thought bubble: I've been covering the rise of the "go direct" communications strategy for two years now, and it's a thing. By adopting this strategy, Harris and Trump are validating the power of hyper-targeted digital comms campaigns.However, communicating through memes comes with some risk. They have a very short shelf life and can backfire if they are deemed too forced or inauthentic. Zoom in: Memes have also been used to flip the script by taking ownership of an unflattering or cringey moment."The concept of 'flipping the meme' has been around for a long time in American politics," says Doug Busk, principal at Arvo Advisory and former adviser to the Obama campaign. "It's when a candidate embraces a meme in a self deprecating way that inoculates them.""There's power in that. It makes clear that you don't, as a candidate, view it as a point of weakness. It is instead a point of strength," he adds.What they're saying: Memes are meant to elicit connection and signal a range of emotions that galvanizes supporters, says Caleb Smith, president of Drive Public Affairs and a former digital director for three Republican House Speakers."This style of communication is most effective when it's based in truth and reflects who the candidate is," says Smith. "Humor is certainly when Trump is at his best — 2016 Trump was funny. ... In 2020, we saw more vindictive and angry memes coming out of the campaign."The intrigue: Republican operatives have long contended that the Left can't meme — take for example, the "Dark Brandon" memes that often fell flat. However, Democrats say that their desire to be more online has always been there — and now that the top name on the ticket has changed, so can the digital strategy."They're finally letting us do fun things again," said one Democratic digital strategist. Data: Hootsuite; Note: Includes Meta, X, TikTok, Pinterest, LinkedIn and Reddit; Chart: Axios VisualsBy the numbers: Harris has been mentioned roughly 46 million times across social media platforms in the past 30 days, according to social listening platform Hootsuite.That's a 62,800% increase in over a month's span.Trump saw about 34 million mentions in the past 30 days, with the biggest bumps taking place around the announcement of JD Vance as his running mate and his X interview with Elon Musk.Tim Walz and Vance have seen less online chatter, with 12 million and 11 million mentions, respectively.Zoom in: Harris and Walz have slightly less negative sentiment across social media than Trump and Vance, according to Hootsuite data.Plus, "Laffin' Kamala" memes being pushed by the right have not seen as much engagement as the "Brat" and "coconut tree" memes, which have developed more organically.Yes, but: This is a digital strategy that extends beyond simply getting clicks or mentions, says Maxwell Nunes, executive vice president and head of paid digital at SKDK."All of these [political] memes are about driving a message, changing the conversation and getting ahead of the other side," he added.Between the lines: The Harris-Walz campaign's mastery of memes have given them more time to skirt traditional media. Instead, they are meeting a key voting block where they are — online, says Ben O'Keefe, CEO of Chaotic Good Media and a former aide to U.S. Sen. Elizabeth Warren."What I'm seeing is just a real opportunity to embrace an authentic language that resonates with this core demographic that Democrats desperately need to win, but we're not previously capturing," O'Keefe adds.Trump is also engaging with more voters online, most recently by returning to X and participating in an X Spaces interview with Elon Musk.🥊 Reality check: This strategy assumes that online chatter and vibes alone can get people to the polls. What to watch: Democrats will have to bridge the meme momentum from the web to the main stage of next week's DNC. Democrats have enlisted hundreds of influencers to create content throughout the convention and are using vertical video to stream the event across TikTok, Instagram and YouTube. More on Axios: DNC to stream vertically on TikTok, Instagram and YouTubeLengthy glitch disrupts Elon Musk's "conversation" with TrumpHarris team swiftly embraces Gen Z memes about VP