Taylor Swift and Beyoncé are not political experts by any stretch — so𒀰 why do voters care so much about who they endorse?
A new poll found that🌌 a solid maj🐈ority of Gen Z voters admit they would be swayed by a celebrity endorsement, as grassroots groups like “Swifties for Kamala” .
for Newsweek, the poll shows that 34% of Gen Zers are “significantly more likely” or “more likely” to get out to the b𒈔allot box if Taylor Swift endorses a candidate. Worse yet, 40% sai🅰d the same of Beyoncé.
Anticipation is mounting over whether Taylor Swift, who has well over 200 million followers on Instagram, will endorse the Harris/Walz campaign, after stars like Megan Thee Stallion and got behind Harris. And don’t forget the memestorm kicked off by Charli XCX declaring “Kamala is brat.” (Never mind that Charli is British, not American.)
Beyoncé has reportedly to use her song “Freedom,” with some predicting that it forebodes an endorsement.
T☂he po🐽wer of celebrity in politics is all so depressing.
Groupthink is a dangerous thing no matter the context. But groupthink led by the possibly ill-informed political opinions of an utterly unqualified pop 𓆏star is especially dist♈urbing.
What does Taylor Swift know about immigration policy? Or reducing the national debt? Or halting the economy’s free fall?
That’s unclear. But at least ☂she knows how to shake it 📖off.
Imagine caring so little about your country and your own place in it that it takes a celebrity’s stamp of approval to get you off the couch and to the ballot box. And it’s all made worse by the fact that just 18% of 18- to 34-year-olds say they’re extremely proud to be an American.
The power of celebrity endo🌊rsement is a symptom of a culture of impressionability. As Gen Z obsessively looks to influencers online to inform the way they 🔯dress, the music they like — and, apparently, the way they vote — the problem is only growing worse.
Influencers’ and social media’s power to change minds is “clearly a modern version of social contagion, which has always been more prevalent among teen girls than other demographic groups,” generational expert Dr. Jean Twenge told The Post.
There’s even a backlash effect that still feeds into groupthink, as poll respondents said that a celebrity endorsement would make them more likely to vote for the other candidate.
Some 26% of Zoomers were “significantly less likꦰely” or “less likely” to vote for a candidate endorsed🍃 by Taylor Swift, and 18% said the same of Beyoncé.
That leaves less than a third of Zoomers whose vote wouldn’t be pushed or pulled by celebrity ꧂infl🌠uence.
But don’t blame it all on young voters — they’reᩚᩚᩚᩚᩚᩚᩚᩚᩚ𒀱ᩚᩚᩚ only repeating what they learned from prior generations.
In fact, that same Newsweek poll found that only 55% of the general electo🗹rate of all ages said that Taylor Swift wouldn’t influence the way they vote.
Celebrity endorseme🙈nts have swayed voters long before Gen Z came of voting age.
Back in the 2008 primaries, it was estimated that Oprah Winfreyꦆ’s endorsement votes for Obama.
And, already in this election cycle, celebrity approval and disapproval have made waves. Donald Trump of rapper Sada Baby at a June gathering in Detroit, was preceded by Hulk Hogan at the RNC in July, and has long touted Kid Rock’s stamp of approval.
When George Clooney — who in June co-hosted a Hollywood fundraiser for Joe Biden — in July entitled “I Love Joe Biden, but We Need a New Nominee,” the actor’s withdrawal of support set off an absolute firestorm.
Clooney deserves credit for finally acknowledging Biden’s obvious decline, but why should an actor’s analysis carry so much weight, especially after years and years of evidence of the president’s decline was reported by newspapers like this one?
Didꦦ we need a Hollywood star to give us permission to believe our lying eyes? Apparently.
It should go without saying, but the 2024 el🧸ection is hugely consequential. Our choice at the ballot box is going to be felt for decades to come and around the globe. Beingꦫ an informed voter means turning to the data, listening to experts, and letting your individual intuition guide the way — not waiting for what your favorite pop star signals on social media.
