Lauren has amassed more than 455,400 followers on his personal TikTok account and nearly 20 million likes. By contrast, the Biden campaign has just 274,000 followers, and Donald Trump, the presumptive Republican nominee, has no official TikTok presence.
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While Lauren describes his own political philosophy as anti-establishment, he cites conservative influencers — Tucker Carlson, Glenn Greenwald, Tulsi Gabbard — as inspirations because of their strong personal brands and ability to build successful independent media businesses. He recently slammed traditional cable news outlets on X as “full of hypocrites who’ve sold their souls to peddle DNC talking points” and says “I love Fox News because they have the best ratings.”
www.washingtonpost.com/…
Robert F. Kennedy Jr. has quietly built up a formidable social media presence, especially on TikTok.
Why it matters: His strong following on TikTok — an app that has exploded in popularity among young people — could give him extra exposure among this key voter demographic ahead of November.
By the numbers: With 1.1 million TikTok followers, Kennedy has some of the most of any U.S. politician, according to the political newsletter FWIW, which tracks digital spending and strategy.
- The Biden campaign, which joined TikTok last month, has just under 273,000 followers on the platform.
- Former President Trump does not have an official account on TikTok, but many conservative figures are active on the platform.
- Across the major platforms — Instagram, TikTok, X, Facebook, YouTube, Threads and Rumble — Kennedy has more than 6.7 million followers, according to the FWIW analysis.
Zoom in: A video of Kennedy's State of the Union rebuttal garnered 12.1 million views and 1.7 million likes.
- There's an element of "more nontraditional, anti-establishment candidates finding a home and a following on TikTok," Lindsay Gorman, a senior fellow for emerging technologies at the German Marshall Fund, told Axios.
- Kennedy, a scion of one of America's most prominent political dynasties, was banned from various social media platforms during the pandemic over vaccine misinformation.
www.axios.com/...
As Someone New To This Arena I'm Sure You're Learning So Much So Fast. What Have You Accomplished Since Joining The Team That You Are Most Proud Of?
Recently, the Young Voter video I drafted and worked on is the most successful video since the campaign's inception. I think it's at 20M views now across all platforms. I'm so happy it's been received well. The recent Secret Service statement regarding Nikki Haley added 50,000 new people to our database in a week.
Also, the 'No Shirt, No Shoes, No Secret Service' shirts — which you know I fought for, too!
Overall, I'm incredibly grateful to have a seat at the table. Other campaigns reached out this past year, but Bobby always treats me as an equal. Even when everyone on the core team has about 20 to 30 years on me. I've proven myself behind the scenes — I can't say much more.
I also have to note: I love this country. I'd rather live in the United States of America than anywhere else — even on our worst day. To have a voice in the political process is something I'm humbled and grateful for.
jessicareedkraus.substack.com/...
The candidate’s own family has recoiled at RFK Jr.’s bid. "It's difficult to speak out against a family member," the candidate's cousin, Stephen Kennedy Smith, wrote in a LinkedIn post. "He is now the greatest risk to re-elect Donald Trump, and that is a mistake we cannot afford to make."
time.com/...
The former president, who had originally spearheaded efforts to ban TikTok during his time in the White House, reversed his stance last week, posting on his own social media platform that getting rid of TikTok would benefit Facebook and that he doesn't want that to happen, suggesting Facebook is a bigger problem for the country.
"I don't want Facebook ... doing better. They are a true Enemy of the People!" he wrote.
The Trump campaign did not respond to a request for more information about what motivated Trump's changing view, and it's not yet known what he and Yass discussed in their March 1 meeting.
(Yass owns a significant stake in in TikTok's China-based parent company ByteDance)
But speaking at the Club for Growth retreat, Trump said Yass, in addition to Club for Growth President David McIntosh, had called him to invite him to the event, according to a video clip from that night obtained by ABC News.
abcnews.go.com/...