Skip to main content

Republicans gearing up for 2016 by launching aggressive social media campaigns

GOP using social media to get more voters aboard, a strategy that worked for President Barack Obama in 2008

republican presidential candidates look to social media for new voters gopsocialmedia
Image used with permission by copyright holder
Meet the social network…ing candidate!

2016’s Republican presidential hopefuls are taking a page from the last place you’d think they would turn for ideas: current president Barack Obama, FoxNews.com reports. Obama was labeled by several publications as the first social media president — social media platforms were just coming of age during the beginning of his presidency. Ever since the beginning, Obama has been active on social media, regularly answering voters’ questions throughout his presidency.

Recommended Videos

Now today’s Republican candidates are looking to social media to appeal to voters, too. Only in recent years did the Republican Party start using technology and social media to woo voters. Technology is a realm that the Democrats have had a strong hold on, according to the National Journal. Republican politicians have become more active on social media to fight that democratic advantage. According to FoxNews.com, Republican candidates aren’t just using Facebook and Twitter — two of Obama’s favorite social media platforms — but are also testing out newer apps as well. Former Hewlett-Packard CEO Carly Fiorina, for example, is trying to reach voters through Periscope, a video-streaming app owned by Twitter.

Kentucky Senator Rand Paul, another Republican presidential candidate, prefers to use Meerkat, one of Periscope’s competitors. Jeb Bush, former Governor of Florida (1999-2007) and the younger brother of former President George W. Bush, is also running for the Republican nomination. Bush also used Meerkat to connect with likely voters on Twitter.

However, some candidates still didn’t have their heads in the social media game. Bush made headlines when he hired (and fired a few days later) 31-year-old Ethan Czahor as the chief technology officer of his political action committee (PAC). Czahor had a history of making negative remarks about gays, women, and minorities.

Fiorina and Texas Senator Ted Cruz failed to even register websites with their name on it, such as CarlyFiorina.org and TedCruz.com. The domains have been taken over by a Fiorina critic who called attention to her tenure as CEO of Hewlett-Packard and an Obama supporter who supports immigration reform, respectively.

The Republican National Committee hired Gerrit Lansing as its Chief Digital Officer to spearhead the social media effort. Lansing, whose resume shows his experience in Washington regarding digital and tech issues, showed that the Republican Party is serious about winning voters via social media. “Gerrit’s depth of experience has given him valuable insight into the ever-evolving world of digital campaigning, and we are fortunate to be able to take advantage of his unique knowledge,” RNC Chairman Reince Priebus told FoxNews.com.

“I’m thrilled to be joining the RNC’s digital operation, which has already taken such great strides towards victory in 2016,” said Lansing. “By expanding and adapting our digital capabilities, we will bring Republican values and ideas to more voters than ever before. I am proud to be a part of these unprecedented efforts.”

Jose Alvarez
Former Digital Trends Contributor
Introduced to tech at a young age, Jose has grown attached to video games in particular. He has covered topics such as…
How to make a GIF from a YouTube video
woman sitting and using laptop

Sometimes, whether you're chatting with friends or posting on social media, words just aren't enough -- you need a GIF to fully convey your feelings. If there's a moment from a YouTube video that you want to snip into a GIF, the good news is that you don't need complex software to so it. There are now a bunch of ways to make a GIF from a YouTube video right in your browser.

If you want to use desktop software like Photoshop to make a GIF, then you'll need to download the YouTube video first before you can start making a GIF. However, if you don't want to go through that bother then there are several ways you can make a GIF right in your browser, without the need to download anything. That's ideal if you're working with a low-specced laptop or on a phone, as all the processing to make the GIF is done in the cloud rather than on your machine. With these options you can make quick and fun GIFs from YouTube videos in just a few minutes.
Use GIFs.com for great customization
Step 1: Find the YouTube video that you want to turn into a GIF (perhaps a NASA archive?) and copy its URL.

Read more
I paid Meta to ‘verify’ me — here’s what actually happened
An Instagram profile on an iPhone.

In the fall of 2023 I decided to do a little experiment in the height of the “blue check” hysteria. Twitter had shifted from verifying accounts based (more or less) on merit or importance and instead would let users pay for a blue checkmark. That obviously went (and still goes) badly. Meanwhile, Meta opened its own verification service earlier in the year, called Meta Verified.

Mostly aimed at “creators,” Meta Verified costs $15 a month and helps you “establish your account authenticity and help[s] your community know it’s the real us with a verified badge." It also gives you “proactive account protection” to help fight impersonation by (in part) requiring you to use two-factor authentication. You’ll also get direct account support “from a real person,” and exclusive features like stickers and stars.

Read more
Here’s how to delete your YouTube account on any device
How to delete your YouTube account

Wanting to get out of the YouTube business? If you want to delete your YouTube account, all you need to do is go to your YouTube Studio page, go to the Advanced Settings, and follow the section that will guide you to permanently delete your account. If you need help with these steps, or want to do so on a platform that isn't your computer, you can follow the steps below.

Note that the following steps will delete your YouTube channel, not your associated Google account.

Read more