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This is not a joke : According to a line of work list , President Joe Biden ’s reelection campaign needs someone to manage meme . The “ Partner Manager , Content and Meme Pages ” hire will “ initiate and contend day - to - mean solar day operations in hire the internet ’s top message and meme pages . ” The job pays up to $ 85,000 .
Yes , it ’s absurd to be a professional meme director . But in this years , digital organizing is just as valuable as canvassing IRL at a farmers grocery . If a candidate is taste to meet elector where they are , then they need to be on-line , where endure viral can mean link up with 1000000 of people . That ’s why Biden ’s campaign has aTikTok account , even though the presidentsigned a billthat could effectivelyban the app .
“ I do mean that we can and should infuse relevant , trendy and fun bit into how we are communicating , specially on digital platforms,”Annie Wu Henry , a creator and digital communications strategist , told TechCrunchin February . “ But while we ’re doing that , we demand to continue to be strategic and intentional and aware , even if it ’s a meme . ”
Even before clear this hire , the Biden campaign has already relied on meme to appeal to voters . The Dark Brandon meme , which stems from alt - right wing conspiracy theories about the president , has been so ubiquitous on Biden ’s political campaign accounts that it feels stale . But the people seem to get it on it : Last August , Dark Brandon merch accounted for54 % of the campaign store ’s total gross , according to Axios .
Former president Donald Trump has also embrace memes as he campaigns for his issue to the White House . WhenTrump ’s mugshotpredictably went viral , his cause immediately started selling T - shirt , mugs and beer koozies with the persona , accompanied by textbook that says “ Never deliver . ”
Biden is far from the first campaigner to note that what happens online can sway an election . For as long as social media has survive , it ’s been a worthful tool for political labor organizer , but the pandemic speed up campaigns ’ embrace of digital tactics . When Ed Markey ( D - MA ) ran for reelection to the Senate in 2020 , Gen omega bill poster around the country concocted“the Markeyverse,”an constitutional on-line cause to make trusted a climate - well-disposed senator maintain his bum . Meanwhile , the anonymous on-line personality Organizer Memes has been hostingmeme trainingsfor political system such as the South Carolina Young Democrats . In these education , player collaboratively make memes , discuss what makes a good meme , and learn how to use existing meme templates to react in real time to break in political news .
Given the Biden governance ’s potential to ban TikTok , young people may see through the campaign ’s endeavour to woo them with meme . But if nothing else , embracing social medium is proof that a drive is at least trying to engage a younger demographic .
