“They’re eating the dogs…They’re eating the cats!” - Donald J. Trump
In the recent 2024 presidential election the implementation of memes as a political tool had voters talking all around the country. Memes became a way for both candidates, Kamala Harris and Donald J. Trump, to connect with their large audiences in a humorous yet influential way.
I believe that from this election it is clear that voters and social media users can often get wrapped in the virality and spectacle of such priceless moments. But, what are the consequences of not doing our own research into how these pieces of digital history came to be and why they move us?
We can first look at Harris’s campaign’s use of memes because we all know that strategy surely did not fall out of a coconut tree. According to Coleman (2024), KamalaHQ’s most widespread use of meme was capitalizing off of British music artist Charli XCX’s “Brat Summer”. Brat Summer filled with its bright green iconography and party girl aesthetic connected with young Generation Z’s as they valued living in the moment and self-expression.
As a Gen Z social media user myself who is also interested in politics and marketing, the well thought-out advertising that Harris was able to design is extremely intriguing. By claiming Brat she made Gen Z’s feel that they could have a president who is relatable and recognizes the importance of young voices in our country.
The formation of this narrative gained significant notoriety on TikTok and many young people began to absorb their Kamala Harris news on the app. However, this makes perfect sense as the video content creation platform shares many aspects with tabloid journalism (Drenten, 2022, p. 3) . In Jenna Drenten’s article West Elm Caleb and the rise of the TikTok tabloid she discusses this phenomenon and how online algorithms continuously feed us the most popular content.
TikTok’s algorithm has the power to amplify memes on a large scale. Drenten (2022) compares the “For You Page” to a virtual front page where trendy videos are ready and accessible for users (p. 4). The videos act as the news and the users become the readers. To me, this format of TikTok would easily have been the source for Harris to not only resonate with younger people but also active social media users of all demographics. Further, this relates to how Kamala Harris memes have been distributed to reach millions of users that do not normally interact with political content.
Another point Drenten (2022) addresses is the rise of social surveillance which is defined as “the many watching the many” (p. 4). I believe that In Harris and KamalaHQ’s case this idea can be observed in two ways. One being how consumers of Harris's content not only watch her videos but also create their own. One of the most popular memes being “Kamala is Brat”. Alternatively, we can read the situation as the Harris campaign watching what her audience finds funny and exciting, then applying those concepts in their campaigns to ensure engagement.
Either way, spreading messages like “Kamala is Brat” and allowing her audience to see her in a charismatic light allowed Harris to successfully connect with more people. I believe that the light-hearted and “I’m hip" approach is exactly what encouraged voters to engage with her campaign and pay more mind to what change she had to offer.
Now, let’s address what the people were doing in Springfield, Ohio…or at least what President Trump claimed they were doing. What I am referring to is when Trump famously said during the presidential debate that Haitian residents of Springfield were eating cats and dogs (Licosa, 2024). Everyone observing this in real time saw how the viral moment drove up criticism and publicity for Trump. Media sources like TikTok, Instagram, and X were populated with memes and reactions to his statement. Specifically, my FYP was full of videos with his voice overlaid on top of voters filming their cats and dogs having hilarious reactions to the commentary made by the president.
Trump also capitalized on this trend taking it upon himself to make Artificial Intelligence (AI) generated images which he posted on his X page ranging from cats in his signature Make America Great Again hat, him saving cats, and even cats with automated rifles. The possibilities are endless! Many of the images can be found on FOX 5 DC news.
Trump and his team took the controversy and well reasoned criticism then repurposed it for his own personal gain. His quickness in being able to produce his own memes using AI is an example of the phenomenon of participatory culture. Alice Marwick and Rebecca Lewis (2017) in their report Media Manipulation and Disinformation Online describe participatory culture as a media manipulation strategy which has low barriers to entry and sharing of content (p. 34). Trump takes advantage of this media tactic to spread a message to his right-wing supporters since communities that use these are often far-right leaning.
Some way say that memes actually took away from the election and had a tendency to weaken the political intentions of both parties. For example, Harris’s brat memes don’t add any political value and only push her personality or that Trump’s AI photos distract from his policy plans. However, memes being widely accepted as comical is not exclusive from their effectiveness in making political content more accessible and broadening the candidates outreach. In my opinion, memes are interconnected and one political parody image may lead a viewer to conduct their own research to be aware of its context.
Ultimately, It is exciting to be in a time where presidential advertisements can revolve around memes. However, it is essential that political campaigns in the future find a happy medium between being humorous and maintaining a message with substance. I hope that this past election reinforces the power of memes to all political figures.
References
FOX 5 DC Digital Team. (2024, September 10). AI memes of cats, Trump and Harris flood social media during debate. FOX 5 DC. https://www.fox5dc.com/news/ai-memes-trump-harris-flood-social-media-during-debate
J.D. Wolf. (2024, September 12). Trump Posts New Round of AI Haitian Cat Eating Hoax Memes. Media News. https://meidasnews.com/news/trump-posts-new-round-of-ai-haitian-cat-eating-hoax-memes
Jenna Drenten Associate Professor of Marketing, . (2022, January 27). West Elm Caleb and the rise of the TikTok tabloid. The Conversation. https://theconversation.com/west-elm-caleb-and-the-rise-of-the-tiktok-tabloid-175485
Licosa, M. I. di. (2024, November 4). Political Memes are Contributing More Than Just Laughs to this Election. Columbia News Service. https://columbianewsservice.com/2024/11/04/political-memes-are-contributing-more-than-just-laughs-to-this-election/
Marwick, A. & Lewis, R. (2017, May 15). Media Manipulation and Disinformation Online. https://datasociety.net/library/media-manipulation-and-disinfo-online/
Theara Coleman, T. W. U. (2024, July 30). All the Kamala Harris memes explained. Theweek; The Week. https://theweek.com/politics/kamala-harris-memes
Sophia Leong:
ReplyDeleteThe 2024 Presidential Election cycle has been unique because of its candidate’s use of memes and social media platforms.
I agree that although the memes created by Kamala Harris HQ and Team Trump did not contribute to their political party’s political intentions, they did help to expand each of the candidates’ campaigns. They were able to successfully reach younger generations of voters and bring attention to the upcoming election through various social media platforms. For example, I was able to see Kamala Harris’s memes on both Instagram and TikTok.
It can be argued that the usage of memes for the political campaigns of both Kamala Harris and Donald Trump can be applied to the concept of “Celebrity as an Industry”. This follows a definition of celebrity in which they become a marketable product (Turner, 2010, p.14). I remember seeing videos of Kamala Harris and Donald Trump’s speeches circulating online in song form and through reaction videos. A couple days later, I saw shirts being sold on Etsy, Amazon, and Redbubble for supporters to purchase.
Through their campaigns’ utilization of their platforms to create internet memes, the candidates have taken on roles as celebrities– their memes have been turned into cultural products, such as t-shirts, mugs, and hats. As a result, they become promotable products and creators can make profits off of their creations.
References:
Turner, G. (2010). Approaching Celebrity Studies. Celebrity Studies, 1(1), 11-20. https://doi.org/10.1080/19392390903519024
Kenadi: your op-ed offers great insight into the growing overlap between celebrity culture and the way politicians shape their public personas. It’s made me think more about “parasocial politics” and why it’s becoming so common. As Turner (2014) explains, the public’s fascination with the private lives of public figures has been around for a long time, but the digital age has amplified this obsession. What’s interesting is how this creates a paradox: politicians who draw on popular culture, like Kamala Harris' campaign with Brat, and break traditional norms are often praised for being relatable, while traditional celebrities, who are expected to entertain, are criticized for similar behavior. For example, Chappell Roan, the subject of my op-ed, has been criticized for resisting the constant public availability and perfection expected of celebrities. Her decision to step back and challenge these norms has led to backlash, much like Britney Spears experienced when, as Vaidya and Lingel (2024) describe, she was judged for not meeting the rigid expectations of fame. In contrast, politicians who break norms of seriousness or decorum are often celebrated for being innovative or relatable. This double standard reflects a cultural bias: traditional celebrities are penalized for imperfection, while politicians can use it to make themselves more approachable and reshape how leadership is perceived. It makes me wonder if celebrity studies will eventually expand to focus on politicians too, given how much the two worlds are blending. It always makes me wonder where the future of politics is heading.
ReplyDelete- Cassidy W