"News influencers have emerged as one of the key alternatives to traditional outlets as a news and information source for a lot of people, especially younger folks," said the study's co-author Galen Stocking. "And these influencers have really reached new levels of attention and prominence this year amid the presidential election."
The rise of social media influencers, and in particular news-focused creators, has been slowly embraced by politicians in recent years. Almost a decade ago, then-President Barack Obama surprised some by granting interviews to major YouTube creators.
This year's Democratic convention in Chicago was the first to open its doors to social media content creators, credentialing 200 of them for the four-day event in an effort to connect with younger audiences.
Throughout the election, young creators were also driving messaging to their audiences on political topics, including Project 2025, a conservative policy road map from the Heritage Foundation aimed at laying the groundwork for a future Republican administration.
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