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Looking back at mid-term messaging dynamics. One lesson: let's not let it happen again.
The creator of the meme, "Jobs Not Mobs," who goes by the pen name “Bryan Machiavelli,” told The New York Times he charges $200 an hour for his “memetic warfare consulting” services.
Users on Reddit and Twitter continued to push the slogan, as popular pages on Facebook began to pick it up. The transfer of a message across social networks is one way a meme like this becomes amplified.
Donald J. Trump tweet:
The Democrats care more about having power than doing what’s right for the country. I need you to vote for JOBS, not mobs!
By Oct. 18, the slogan had spread across the internet.
That evening, Mr. Trump tweeted, simply, “#JobsNotMobs!” Reddit erupted with glee.
#JobsNotMobs had now entered the mainstream.
Mr. Trump returned to the idea, tweeting out the hashtag several more times. It had quickly become a message the Republican Party would carry into the midterm elections.
With this meme, the far-right internet had found an opening for a new Republican talking point, molding it into a compact slogan and seeding it with the most powerful conservatives in the country.
Some who were online could hardly believe their success. “Can you guys believe that we, this domreddit, did this though?” one Reddit user wrote, referring to the r/the_donald forum, inserting an expletive. “Life imitates memes.”
Users on Reddit and Twitter continued to push the slogan, as popular pages on Facebook began to pick it up. The transfer of a message across social networks is one way a meme like this becomes amplified.
Donald J. Trump tweet:
The Democrats care more about having power than doing what’s right for the country. I need you to vote for JOBS, not mobs!
By Oct. 18, the slogan had spread across the internet.
That evening, Mr. Trump tweeted, simply, “#JobsNotMobs!” Reddit erupted with glee.
#JobsNotMobs had now entered the mainstream.
Mr. Trump returned to the idea, tweeting out the hashtag several more times. It had quickly become a message the Republican Party would carry into the midterm elections.
With this meme, the far-right internet had found an opening for a new Republican talking point, molding it into a compact slogan and seeding it with the most powerful conservatives in the country.
Some who were online could hardly believe their success. “Can you guys believe that we, this domreddit, did this though?” one Reddit user wrote, referring to the r/the_donald forum, inserting an expletive. “Life imitates memes.”
The fact that 2018 was a Wave was real. Just because it didn't work then, doesn't mean that digital media won't roll it out again.
We just need to keep in mind that oppo research will test "issues" from now on to set up FUD.
Fear.Uncertainty.Doubt. FUD setups drive the summer messaging and digital profit.
Not claiming this is the only current dynamic, but just watch -- and not get triggered by -- what trends on Twitter, then hits right wing media, then hits TV.
This year, previous election messaging timelines are gone. This pandemic means the General Election has begun even before the convention.
https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2018/11/04/technology/jobs-not-mobs.html
