1 week ago
40
President Donald Trump’s “superpower” is his representation and personality, says Alex Bruesewitz, a elder advisor shaping the White House’s integer communications strategy and a cardinal fig successful its outreach to online audiences.
Speaking to Kathimerini, Bruesewitz describes a strategy aimed astatine reconnecting Trump with the taste relevance helium erstwhile commanded earlier entering authorities and translating that into governmental momentum successful the integer age.
“I knew Donald Trump earlier helium entered authorities done his celebrity” helium says. “He was a billionaire who was connected television each night. He was the star of ‘The Apprentice.’ He was astatine New York parties with supermodels and actresses, helium was featured successful 257 hip-hop songs and helium was a taste icon, everybody loved him, the media loved him.”
That image, helium says, changed dramatically when Trump entered politics. “And then helium decided to tally for president arsenic a Republican, and helium benignant of mislaid that personage image. And not due to the fact that helium wanted to, but due to the fact that the media took it distant from him. That was 1 of his superpowers.” Reclaiming that “superpower” became a cardinal objective. “During the 2024 election, it was very important to assistance reclaim that image” Bruesewitz says. “We were capable to bash that by having him team up with the modern-day celebrities – the YouTubers, the influencers connected Instagram and TikTok – and the president was cooler than each of them.”
“It has influenced the White House’s communications attack rather a bit” helium adds. That displacement is present visible successful the day-to-day workings of the administration. “They thin into the president’s personage a small spot more” helium says, noting a steady stream of high-profile visitors. “We person had high-profile athletes and singers, and conscionable different types of high-profile radical visit the Oval Office this go-around. We’ve had Andrea Bocelli bash a backstage performance.”
What sets Trump apart, successful his view, is something nary different governmental fig tin replicate. “It’s very unique to the president. No different person successful America has that type of star power. No Republican, nary Democrat. It’s very unique to this president, and so it’s important that we use it.”
Despite the prominence of integer media and a increasing formed of influencers, Bruesewitz insists that connection power remains centralized. “The president controls the message, the subordinate stops with him” helium says. “The Truth Social posts that you spot that get fired disconnected – when they’re really words, where he’s really sending a connection – that comes from the president.” At the aforesaid time, helium draws a favoritism betwixt archetypal contented and reposted material. “Occasionally, there’ll beryllium a video oregon something that gets sent to him and helium reposts it. That’s not needfully coming from him.”
A large portion of the strategy, helium argues, is engaging younger audiences who person drifted distant from traditional media and, successful galore cases, from authorities itself. “Definitely” helium says when asked whether younger voters are disconnected. “And disconnected from authorities altogether.” Trump, helium argues, has reversed that trend. “The president has done a truly unique occupation of getting young radical engaged successful the voter process whether you vote for him oregon against him. He made young radical get involved.”
He frames that engagement arsenic a broader antiauthoritarian impact. “When radical talk astir ideology – and Greece is the birthplace of ideology – there’s been nary greater American president for ideology successful my sentiment than Donald Trump” helium says. “Because helium brings tens of millions of radical to the polls each single year who astir apt would sit retired of the process.” That surge successful participation, however, cuts some ways. “It makes our occupation a small spot much challenging, due to the fact that helium brings retired a batch of haters, but helium besides brings retired radical who emotion him.”
Looking ahead, Bruesewitz says helium hopes that level of engagement endures. “My anticipation successful a post-Trump America is that voter engagement stays high, particularly with young people, but we’ll spot what happens.”
On the aboriginal of media, helium rejects the thought that caller platforms will afloat regenerate traditional outlets. “Right present they complement each other” helium says. “The caller media spend a batch of their clip trashing the aged media. The aged media spend their clip trashing the caller media. And they benignant of person a symbiotic relationship. They some request each other.”
Still, helium is sharply captious of mainstream outlets such arsenic The New York Times, The Washington Post and CNN. “They aren’t journalists anymore. They’re activists” helium says, while acknowledging akin dynamics connected the governmental right. “It’s very hard to find an unbiased quality network. But I think radical person besides stopped searching for unbiased. They person their beliefs now, and so they question retired channels that stock their beliefs.”
He besides pushes backmost against the thought that elections tin beryllium won online alone. “No,” helium says. “You request to person the mechanics of a traditional campaign. You person to person radical who tin amusement up to sound connected doors for you, who tin amusement up to rallies for you.” Digital and crushed operations, helium argues, indispensable work together. “You request to person online capabilities, but besides the traditional mechanics; some radical get a small lazy, and they think you conscionable request 1 oregon the other, but you truly request both.”
Asked astir the administration’s much assertive and confrontational tone online, Bruesewitz dismisses concerns astir risk. “We get that question a lot” helium says. “I person a batch of religion successful our team who’s doing the messaging astatine the White House.” Ultimately, helium sees the tone arsenic inseparable from Trump himself. “No substance what the president does oregon says, he’s going to beryllium viewed arsenic polarizing” helium says. “This White House mimics the president’s property a spot more, which is better.”
That approach, however, is not easy transferable. “Not each Republican, not each person tin pass the way the president does,” helium says. “He has a unique style. He besides has a unique tone.” For that reason, helium offers a enactment of caution to others who mightiness try to replicate it. “I’m personally a instrumentality of the strategy” helium says. “But I wouldn’t needfully promote different politicians to bash that arsenic well. I don’t think they tin get distant with it.”
Greek (GR) · 
English (US) ·