Copyright NBC News
Zohran Mamdani’s rapid rise in New York City has gone hand in hand with his savvy social media presence and easy navigation of the universe of influential podcasters, YouTubers and TikTokers. So with just one week to go until Election Day, Mamdani decided to bring many of those content creators into his campaign headquarters, hosting a news conference exclusively for influencers and giving them a chance to ask about his campaign promises — or just something off the beaten path of the New York mayoral campaign. The assembled creators asked Mamdani in-depth questions about education, immigration and child care policies — often with direct tie-ins to their own personal stories or platforms. Many also took the chance to ask questions he was unlikely to receive in any traditional media setting. Reggie B, a Brooklyn-based hip-hop recording artist, asked such a question. “In your time as mayor,” he began, “are you planning on providing bisexual girlfriends to everyone in New York City?” Amid much laughter, Mamdani stood and smiled. It was the only question he declined to answer. NBC News was granted exclusive access as a traditional media outlet to the 40-minute briefing, which the Mamdani campaign said was aimed at reaching new and less politically engaged audiences. A campaign spokesperson said more than 70 creators from Twitch, YouTube, Instagram, TikTok, X, Substack, various podcasts and other platforms attended the briefing, with the attendees boasting a combined audience of more than 77.3 million followers. The campaign said it sent invitations out to members of its “new media press list,” adding that most are cultural, lifestyle and identity influencers, not specifically political figures. The campaign added that it holds four or five weekly media availabilities for traditional media and felt the need to connect with new media in a similar manner. In opening the event, Mamdani, a 34-year-old state assemblyman and self-described democratic socialist, praised the content creators for “doing the critical work of reaching those who are not yet engaged, those who are disaffected, those who are too busy trying to figure out how to survive to actually engage in the politics” of New York City. “I don’t take your or their support for granted,” he said. “I don’t expect you to just make fun videos with me. I want you to ask questions, because you deserve answers.” Mamdani’s influencer briefing, which the campaign said was weeks in the making, echoes recent efforts on both the right and the left to elevate supportive content creators alongside more traditional media briefings. Across the spectrum, influencers are playing a larger role in the political process. This year, White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt held multiple briefings for pro-Trump influencers in the West Wing. Sen. Elizabeth Warren, D-Mass., has held a half-dozen private virtual briefings with social media influencers in recent months. Last year, President Joe Biden hosted more than 100 influencers at the White House, saying they were “the new breakthrough in how we communicate.” Donald Trump got credit after his win last year for participating in a series of long-form podcast interviews with new-age content creators, with many believing his approach boosted critical support among young men. Some of those podcasters are now criticizing various Trump efforts — generating major headlines. “Ultimately, we are spokespeople for normal people in a way that CNN and The New York Times, liberal though some may claim them to be, aren’t anymore and never really have been,” said Matt Bernstein, who hosts the “A Bit Fruity” podcast and has more than 2 million followers between his Instagram and X accounts. “I think we amplify what people want, and in that way, we do have influence.” “I really hope that creators and people who are in this new media and really in touch with the people continue to get access to these spaces,” he added. “And I hope that we continue to be understood as a great resource for a politician like this and not a liability.” Multiple influencers who spoke with NBC News talked up the importance of being not just able to engage with Mamdani and welcomed by his campaign, but willing to hold him accountable for campaign promises they hope to see him enact. “At the end of the day, while we’re all very fond of him because he has made a great effort to connect with us, it’s also incredibly important that we hold him accountable,” Isa Buitrago, a New York-based creator, said in an interview. “Because no politician should ever be on a pedestal, regardless of how amazing they are.” Youssef Hasweh, a pro-Palestinian activist and political creator, asked Mamdani how he would make City University of New York schools more affordable and accessible. Before he asked his question, he wished Mamdani “salam alaikum habibi,” a friendly Arabic greeting that translates to “peace be upon you, my beloved.” “They don’t do this in a normal press conference,” Mamdani said. Speaking with NBC News, Hasweh said he thought one of the best questions was “how can we keep you accountable.” “They always talk about us, but they don’t talk to us,” Hasweh said of politicians. “So being in the room was kind of a shock, and I think he’s one of the few administrations that will keep us in the room, which we have never seen.” Ayem “Prance” Kpenkaan, a sketch artist and comedy creator, said influencers will both “call out the good stuff [Mamdani’s] doing and then call out anything that he’s disappointing us in.” “I don’t think anyone here is interested in just doing propaganda,” Kpenkaan said. “We have audiences who trust us. And there’s no point in lying to them, because we’ve spent years building that trust, and the most important thing to a content creator is maintaining that.” The briefing offered a range of questions, from humorous asides to more serious policy matters. Addressing immigration policy, Mamdani, an immigrant who would be the city’s first Muslim mayor, said his election “is an opportunity for us to make clear that immigrants don’t just belong in the five boroughs of New York City — we also belong in City Hall.” Mamdani promised to use the mayoralty “as a bully pulpit” to fight for the interests of New Yorkers and those assembled before him Tuesday. Asked whether the Trump administration’s rapidly unfolding agenda amounted to a “code red” for the country, he agreed. “All Donald Trump cares about is delivering on the parts of his agenda that have to do with cruelty and punishment,” he said. “There’s no interest in the parts of this campaign which animated so many Americans on the lower cost of living, for delivering cheaper groceries. And the potential that we have at the local level is to show that life can be more than this.” After months of focus on affordability issues, Mamdani’s campaign is on the precipice of victory. But Mamdani warned influencers gathered Tuesday that they should not rest ahead of Election Day, even as polls show him with a comfortable lead entering the final days of the race. Mamdani was asked about a brewing narrative: that wealthy New Yorkers will abandon the city if he wins. “What I would say is that when I’ve had conversations with the wealthiest New Yorkers across the city, what I’ve often heard time and again is a concern about quality of life, and that is actually a concern that is universally held by New Yorkers across the five boroughs,” he said. “And the reason that I’m looking to increase income taxes on the top 1% of New Yorkers, those are making $1 million or more by just 2%, the reason that I want to increase the state’s top corporate tax rate to match that of New Jersey is such that we can fund the affordability agenda that will transform the quality of life for each and every person in the city.” Mamdani’s headline policy proposals — many of which came up Tuesday — include providing free bus services, freezing rent for New Yorkers living in rent-stabilized units and enacting universal child care. “So you’re giving everyone a free bus?” an attendee joked, to which Mamdani emphasized he would make every bus free, not provide all New Yorkers with their own personal buses. The questions did not dig only on policy. Mamdani was asked about using humor in his campaign and how that can contribute to pushing the change he is seeking. “I think part of the reason that it’s been effective is also the fact that people are tired of engaging with politics as a performance, as opposed to politics as a reflection of the life that they already know,” he said. “And if all of the ways in which you express yourself are just through talking points and statistics, then you divorce yourself from the people that you’re looking to serve.” Mamdani said he realized early in the campaign that a one-minute video that had some levity in it was one of the most effective ways to reach voters. “What I’m looking to do, and part of that is also what motivates having this press conference with all of you, is to reach out to New Yorkers, not just those who are already engaging with politics, but those who are just engaging with the world around them,” he said. “I can tell you, I’ve been running for mayor for more than a year, and some of my closest friends, the only interview they have watched me give is to ‘Flagrant,’” he said, referring to the comedy podcast hosted by Andrew Schulz. “And I think it’s indicative of the fact that politics can’t just be the way that it’s always been.”
