Mike Bloomberg’s Presidential campaign is paying social media influencers to post memes to Instagram. The camp on behalf of the Democratic presidential candidate and former mayor of New York, seems to be attempting to utilize viral memes to increase campaign exposure and reach new audiences.
‘Going viral’ is something many social media accounts strive for. In other cases, accounts take a more orchestrated approach to sending out a viral message. This can result in collaborative efforts with influencers or companies who specialize in meme distribution. Both of which now appear to have been added to the Bloomberg camp’s campaign arsenal.
A report from the The New York Times states the Bloomberg Presidential campaign has teamed up with Meme 2020 to increase awareness and engagement with social media users. One of those understood to be working on the current project is the Jerry Media CEO, Mick Purzycki. Among other things, Jerry Media has previously attracted much debate (and criticism) for its involvement in creating the marketing push behind the now-infamous Fyre Festival. The paid advertisements on behalf of Bloomberg have already started hitting Instagram and on some high-profile accounts, including grapejuiceboys, tank.sinatra and Jerry Media’s own (and most popular) Instagram account. The common meme message on all the posts is how Bloomberg is the “cool candidate,” or the not-so-cool option, depending on the viewpoint.
The Debate Over Political Viral Campaigning
While there’s now a whole market surrounding meme content, the Bloomberg campaign’s attempt is dividing opinion. There are those that appear to appreciate (from a business standpoint) the advertising push and see it as a great way of utilizing an existing marketing tool. In fact, this appears to be the Bloomberg campaign’s official line with a spokesperson having reportedly explained this is a direct attempt to take on President Trump’s approach to outreach. The Trump campaign has routinely come under criticism for its use of paid social media advertising and especially on Facebook - where the rules over paid-for political adverts appear to be more relaxed.
From the other perspective, there are those who find this to be sullying the election process with the Bloomberg campaign simply attempting to buy access to users. In some respects, even buying votes. Whichever viewpoint is taken, this is more of a reflection of what’s fast becoming the new norm in a social media-first world. Although many might not be happy with the fact that those with the financial power can simply buy their way into social media feeds, it is becoming a more commonly used tool by many. Whether that’s right or wrong is one thing, but it is not something that’s specifically an issue with Bloomberg or Trump. Either way, the sponsored Instagram posts from Bloomberg’s camp are only likely the start of what’s to come, considering the report explains how Meme 20’s collective access to social media influencers has the potential to reach more than 60 million followers.
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Source: NYT
