Senate lawmakers turn to online content creators to push legislation

Social media influencer and wedding dress designer Hayley Paige was set to testify at a Senate hearing this week about banning noncompete agreements, the latest example of how members of the Senate are using online influencers to push their policy initiatives and educate the public about their legislative efforts.

Paige, who has over 1.1 million followers on Instagram and appeared on the hit reality show “Say Yes to the Dress,” was forced to stop designing dresses after her former employer sued her under a noncompete agreement, which limits workers’ ability to continue to work in the same industry. A spokesperson for Sen. Elizabeth Warren, D-Mass., said Paige was not only chosen to testify because of her direct experience with noncompete agreements, but also because of her online reach.

“At a time when more and more people are getting their news on social media, working with creators just makes sense,” Warren said in a statement to the Washington Post. “By reaching out to creators, (the public is) hearing directly on the platforms they use daily from the voices they know and trust.”

The hearing comes as political leaders and major government agencies are seeking to build and tighten their relationships with online content creators, often working with influencers to push their messaging, rather than relying on traditional media.

Earlier this month, the State Department and Department of Defense invited a slew of content creators to the NATO summit in a bid to boost the alliance’s reputation with young people. The White House, which has been briefing influencers and working with them to push key policies throughout Joe Biden’s presidency, is set to host its first creator economy summit on Aug. 14, with dozens of content creators and industry leaders set to attend. The Democrats are also bringing dozens of influencers to the Democratic National Convention in Chicago next month.

On the House side, Rep. Ro Khanna, D-Calif., hosted a four-hour live stream with some of the biggest political Twitch and YouTube live-streamers to discuss major policy initiatives last fall. And, in October 2020, Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, D-N.Y., played the video game “Among Us” on Twitch along with a cadre of top content creators.

“The new generation of Americans aren’t getting their news from MSNBC, CNN or Fox,” Khanna told the Post in September. “That’s just not how millennials and Gen Z consume news or get inspired. One of the ways they’re making decisions is engaging with streamers. It’s the equivalent of talk radio or cable for the new generation.”

Until now, the Senate has been a bit slower to adapt to the shifting media landscape. But that’s changing.

On June 10, Sens. Warren and Raphael G. Warnock, D-Ga., and Rep. Ayanna Pressley, D-Mass., hosted the first congressional briefing for online influencers aimed at educating the public on Biden and Vice President Harris’ work to cancel student loan debt. Seven personal finance influencers with a collective audience of more than 6 million followers were invited to a private meeting with the lawmakers in an ornate room at the Capitol.

“Our Democratic senators know the media landscape in their states, and by working with incredible influencers who are talking every day to Americans, we’re able to spread the message of how we’re working to cancel student debt, lower health care costs, protect democracy, and so much more,” Senate Majority Leader Charles E. Schumer, D-N.Y., said in a statement to the Post.

The influencers said they were able to question the lawmakers about their policies and the issues that their respective audiences care about. After the briefing, the content creators met with Schumer and were given a private tour of his office.

The spokesperson for Warren said that she and other Democratic lawmakers hope to continue working closely with content creators and that senators plan to host more influencer-only briefings this fall. Following Paige’s testimony, the lawmakers are working with the creator-driven digital media company Betches to spread the word about the hearing.

Content creators who attended the June 10 briefing said they found the meeting useful and appreciated that lawmakers recognize their need to produce content. Time was allocated for selfies and recorded sound bites and clips for TikTok, Instagram or YouTube. The lawmakers also gave easily shareable information on student loan debt that the creators could share with followers.

Tiffany Aliche, a content creator in New Jersey known to her over 658,000 followers on Instagram as “The Budgetnista,” said that what sets creators apart from traditional press is their relationship with their audiences and the communities they’ve built. “Not only do people get to interact with the (content creator) sharing the information,” Aliche said, “they get to interact with other people consuming the information.”

Aliche sent many commenters more information about student loan debt by using the platform Manychat, which allows influencers to mass DM users. “I said if you type the word ‘details’ on the Reel I’ll give you more details on what I learned,” she said. “Hundreds of people requested that document.”

JC Rodriguez, a 24-year-old content creator in Nashville, said the June Senate briefing was his first trip to Capitol Hill. “It was pretty cool,” he said. “We’re used to making content from our homes in our bedrooms.”

Rodriguez and other creators also marveled that the senators gave them editorial freedom over the content produced at the briefing. “They let us be very candid with our content,” he said.