Political Elections in the New Wave of Media: The Celebrification of the Presidency

Camille B. Moore, Portland State UniversityFollow

Subjects

political science, politics, elections, presidency, trump, harris

Abstract

This article examines the impact of social media on journalism leading up to the 2024 United States presidential election and how expectations of candidates have changed. By exploring the degradation of discourse in news and how polarization and cognitive biases have intensified with the widespread adoption of social media, previous candidate conventions have begun to crumble. This has, and will continue to have, a large impact on voting and democracy in America, as scholars have noted since the beginning of the 2000’s, in examining a shift in news preferences as pop culture gains influence. This work further examines recent scholarship on cognitive biases, low-information voters, and echo chambers, paired with contemporary sources that highlight how social media directly influences candidates’ actions and voters’ opinions. In seeking a fix, accepting and acknowledging the infiltration of social media into news and mainstream sources must come with greater education and higher expectations for digital literacy among all users. Developing better online literacy tools to identify misinformation, regardless of bias or echo chamber effects. Examining discussions and communal sharing in future research can highlight how discourse and the dissolution of polarization can foster empathy and preserve democratic principles.