Taylor Swift, Beyonce and Hulk Hogan: Do celebrity endorsements still matter?
From Hulk Hogan to Taylor Swift, did celebrity endorsements have any impact on the outcome of the presidential election?
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In brief…
- Kamala Harris raked in dozens of celebrity endorsements from Hollywood actors like George Clooney to superstar artists like Taylor Swift.
- Donald Trump also received celebrity endorsements from the likes of Hulk Hogan and Joe Rogan.
- The News Agents say that while they do not help win elections, there is still some power in celebrity endorsements.
What’s the story?
When Taylor Swift endorsed Kamala Harris, 400,000 people registered to vote in the US election.
She wasn’t the only big name celeb to endorse a political candidate.
Others like Beyonce and George Clooney came out to signal their support for the Democrats.
But with Harris' poor performance across the crucial seven swing states, it raises the question of whether celebrity endorsements really matter at all.
Does it depend on the calibre of celebrity, their level of fame, or who they might attract?
Or are they utterly useless interventions entirely?
Which other celebrities endorsed Harris and Trump?
On the other side of the spectrum, some high profile stars like Hulk Hogan came out in support of Donald Trump.
The macho former wrestler was seen front and centre at Trump’s Madison Square Garden rally, as was American TV personality Dr Phil.
Perhaps the most powerful of the celebrities endorsing Trump was Elon Musk, the X owner who became $70 billion richer overnight as a result of the Republican’s win.
Trump was also endorsed by Joe Rogan, who hosts the world’s most popular podcast on which the Republican appeared during the campaign.
Harris, though, a Californian, was generally more popular with Hollywood celebrities as well as musicians.
Others who expressed their support for the Democrats included Jennifer Lopez, Lady Gaga, Katy Perry and Harrison Ford.
What’s The News Agents’ take?
Jon Sopel argues that rather than helping Harris, Trump not having the same calibre of celebrity endorsements actually work in his favour.
Emily Maitlis agrees that celebrity endorsements might not be all that useful, pointing back to previous elections to illustrate why.
“In 2016 ,the Democrats made the same mistake. Hillary Clinton got every single celebrity endorsement she could, and it fell flat on its face.”
Trump, on the other hand, in 2016 made the point that he didn’t need celebrity endorsements as he had ordinary people on his side.
But Emily says it may depend on which celebrities issue the endorsement.
She says: “Hulk Hogan and Joe Rogan arguably did much more than Beyonce and Taylor Swift.”
Meanwhile, it was essentially George Clooney, Barack Obama and Nancy Pelosi who got Joe Biden to step down when they publicly called for him not to run for president, Emily points out.
That is why “there is still power in what celebrities say, even if it doesn't win you the election”, she adds.