O ver 200 content creators hit Chicago this week, bringing their ring lights and attempts at business casual as part of a historic push by the Democratic national convention to credential non-traditional media. Memes had fueled the initial excitement surrounding Kamala Harris’ 11th-hour presidential bid, and the campaign aimed to churn out more viral moments by granting the creators access during this crucial week. Many, if not most, of the creators paid their own way to Chicago.
Some were sent courtesy of political action committees. On the convention floor, they have danced to Chappell Roan, landed interviews with lawmakers like Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez and Raphael Warnock, and filmed get-ready-with-me videos of their convention outfits. Is their content breaking through? Some of the better-known creators at the convention include Deja Foxx, who worked with the Harris campaign in 2019 as a surrogate strategist and spoke on the convention floor this week; Hasan Piker, a Twitch streamer who used TikTok to spotlight pro-Palestinian protesters ; the menstrual equity activist Nadya Okamoto, who interviewed Michigan’s governor , Gretchen Whitmer, about her first period; and the fashion influencer Vidya Gopalan, who spoke to Harris about sharing a last name with the vice-president’s late mother.
How Americans consume their news is vastly different in 2024. Look how close the DNC’s “Content Creator Platform” is to the stage. Dems have credentialled hundreds of influence.