People First Wins Best Microinfluencer Campaign in Politics + What The Mainstream Media Is Missing About the #TwitterTakeover.
First Some BIG News: People First won a Reed Award for Best Influencer Marketing by a Political Campaign on Thursday. We won this award while competing against consultants and organizations from both political parties.
People First partnered with the Unite the Country PAC, which was formed to garner support for Biden’s presidency, to galvanize voter support in Swing States.
The Reed Awards recognize excellence in political campaigns, grassroots, and advocacy. We are elated to have been a part of this great honor.
Say Cheese! :) Here’s a photo of our Chief Digital Officer Ryan Davis and Business Development Manager Walter Deleon accepting the award in Nashville.
Now… on to this week’s newsletter topic!
Elon Musk’s purchase of Twitter has made waves in the headlines over the last couple of weeks. This move from one of the world’s wealthiest people sparked conversations about free speech, wealth, and growing concerns about media consolidation. We explored nearly 340,000 online messages from self-identified Democrats and Republicans about the #TwitterTakeover.
BIG TAKEAWAY: Our data shows that both Democrats and Republicans have been actively following Elon Musk’s $44 billion Twitter purchase. Based on Google trends search-related terms, users were most interested in understanding why Musk bought the social network platform. There have been similar amounts of participation from both sides of the aisle in the volume of mentions online.
We found evidence that falls in line with most mainstream reporting on this topic but we took a deeper look into the discourse and found there is something you are probably missing about the #TwitterTakeover.
SLEEPER TAKEAWAY: There was one narrative we found online that actually united Democrats and Republicans — money, and lots of it. Both sides share concerns about the misuse of wealth by the super-rich.
In fact, two out of the top 10 Twitter posts about Musk also mentioned Bill Gates buying up farmland across the United States, while other high-performing posts touched on Big Tech and corporate influence on government.
CASE IN POINT: This Bill Gates conversation came up on both sides of the aisle.
Concern about the uber-rich did not just crop up online during Musk’s decision to buy Twitter. It’s actually been a growing trend online over the last three years. Since May 2019, there has been a 60% increase in volumes of mentions of “the 1%.”
What exacerbated this trend recently? The pandemic.
More users expressed outrage at the billionaires who profited from the spread of COVID-19 as many working families experienced enormous losses, including their healthcare, jobs, and homes.
THE BOTTOM LINE: The media is obsessing over Elon Musk’s celebrity status, but they are missing a key point. Real people are concerned about the broader implications of the misuse of wealth. Musk’s decision to purchase Twitter is just one example that fits within that broader conversation.
On both sides of the aisle, everyday people express significant concerns about the social impact of billionaires like Elon Musk and Bill Gates and their incredible amount of influence in politics and economics. It’s not the main story you’ll see about Musk’s Twitter takeover — but it’s the one people actually seem to care about.