“They’re eating the dogs, the people that came in, they’re eating the cats,” Donald Trump said.
“You think you just fell out of a coconut tree? You exist in the context of all in which you live and what came before you,” Kamala Harris said.
For some, these statements don’t mean anything, but for others they are telltale signs of Trump and Harris, the major candidates for the upcoming U.S. presidential election.
The statements came from the candidates themselves, and have circulated all over social media. They have been remixed into audios which users have made edits with and danced to, garnering much attention within the younger generation.
However with the nature of these posts, “it makes the election seem like a joke,” junior Angie Marquez said. “They’re making a bunch of memes around the election, and that should not be perceived as a joke. Social media should inform in better ways.”
Traditionally, the media has always played a key role in elections by informing voters and reporting new occurrences in a timely manner through newspapers and broadcasts.
But in 2024, this changed.
“Social media replaced the old stuff like newspapers. Apps like Tiktok can share people’s ideas but I think that gets mixed with opinions because anybody can say anything,” said senior Ivan Ramirez. “The things people post with the election I think not only affect the perspective people have on the candidates but the candidates themselves.”
Social media, with its significant impact, is being used to target younger voters.
Using the preexisting trend ‘brat summer’, which came from the explosive popularity of the Brat album by English singer Charli XCX, and a tweet from her that stated ‘kamala IS brat’, Harris’ social marketing team capitalized on the opportunity and changed the candidate’s X profile banner to a lime green background titled ‘kamala hq’.
The banner used the same font and placement as the Brat album cover due to her supporters editing her to the song “360”. This affiliation has inspired many to make edits of Harris to showcase her fun and humorous side using characteristic green text of the Brat album.
On the Republican side, there isn’t much in regards to trends or much adhering to the younger population of voters.
Still, there are consistent videos being posted as Trump visits states to speak to rallies.
Additionally, his infamous line about the Haitian immigrants in Ohio has been repeatedly plastered all over edits on TikTok.
The speed at which information spreads also presents dangers, such as misinformation and misleading narratives which result in the contribution of political polarization and the reinforcing of echo chambers.
“I think social media as a whole really plays on people’s emotions and can change perception because a lot of the evidence on social media may not be factual,” behavior support administrator Maggie Jabo said. “So that’s why you always have to do your own research whenever you see something before believing it, so then you understand the full picture as opposed to what social media is trying to portray.”
It’s important to take note of what the media is feeding you, regardless of your bias, and to research about the candidates yourself, regardless of who is presenting the information to you.