Trump Card Spotlight: AI

Republicans are signaling a more laissez-faire approach to AI regulation next Congress, with their control of both the House and Senate. Senator Ted Cruz (R-TX), who is slated to chair the Senate Commerce Committee, recently argued overregulating AI would cause the U.S. to fall behind international competition on innovation, criticizing Democratic efforts to “regulate the hell out of [AI]” as a “terrible idea.” 

Meanwhile, incoming Senate Majority Leader John Thune (R-SD) has advocated for a “light-touch” approach to AI governance. Last year, he teamed up with Sen. Amy Klobuchar (D-MN) on legislation that would require companies to assess the impact of AI systems. Companies would have to self-certify the safety of systems seen as particularly risky, which he described as a counter to current Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer’s (D-NY) “heavy-handed” approach.

Beyond the GOP party platform, which includes a pledge to repeal President Biden’s AI executive order and instead “support AI development rooted in Free Speech and Human Flourishing,” Trump himself has said little about AI policy.

Close allies of the president-elect and his incoming administration have also voiced conflicting views about AI’s existential risks and the need for regulation. Elon Musk came out in support of California’s sweeping AI safety legislation S.B. 1047. Meanwhile, Vice President-elect JD Vance, who has close ties to the AI industry from his time in venture capital, has voiced concerns about overregulation further entrenching Big Tech incumbents and blocking innovation at the expense of the American consumer.

In its first year as a publicly traded firm, Reddit is doing very well for itself. Revenue is up 68%, share price is rising and user numbers are growing fast, with the platform adding 31.2 million new users in the space of a year (+47% growth). Much of this has been driven by an algorithm update in Google that has increased Reddit’s prominence in search results. It also coincides with the launch of a partnership between the two firms, though Google denies a link between the two events.

Regardless, Reddit's increased visibility has had interesting effects, as our colleagues at the Digital Insights newsletter report. Some local establishments mentioned on Reddit have suddenly been swamped by tourists after being highlighted in Google searches—and in at least one case, users promoted a chain restaurant as a “hidden gem” on the platform in response, hoping Google would direct tourists there instead.

As the GameStop saga showed previously, Reddit is an increasingly important channel. It also remains one where corporates and brands have limited cut-through or acceptance – engagement is user-driven, user-moderated and anonymous, and, as the steakhouse example underscores, its user base is very defensive about the impact of the platform. 

Its growth cannot be ignored – but tread carefully. For companies seeking to monitor their reputations online, our Digital Insights team shares a few important considerations:

• Include it as standard as part of your social media monitoring, alongside X – conversations can often start early on Reddit before spilling over to other channels

• Consider it as a channel for paid media – with increasing numbers of users active, many of your stakeholders will be as well, and the hyper-focused nature of many subreddit communities means you may well be able to target tightly.

• Approach direct engagement carefully – it’s unusual for brands to participate on Reddit organically, but a format like an AMA (ask me anything) may pay dividends.

To sign up for Digital Media Insights, contact digitalinsights@fgsglobal.com.  

Influence in the Washington media landscape is shifting ahead of a second Trump administration. Axios recently reported that the “media power brokers” entering the new administration are younger, more visual, less established in Washington and more aligned with MAGA conservative principles. 

Americans are increasingly turning to alternative, personality-driven and independent media sources like podcasts and social media. This trend has fueled the balkanization and radicalization of American media and politics, providing a diverse range of narratives about current events from a variety of sources – while also pitting online talk shows and podcasts designed to entertain against mainstream media outlets bound by editorial standards and journalistic rigor.

Staple outlets like Politico and the Washington Post still have broad bipartisan appeal among DC insiders, as shown in the National Journal’s most recent Washington in the Information Age study (2022). Additionally, Axios ranks as the top online-only news brand for both parties.

In this volatile media environment, readership is subject to sudden shifts. Some MAGA-aligned fringe outlets such as Breitbart and Infowars have seen significant declines in traffic since Trump’s first term. Breitbart’s monthly traffic plummeted nearly 75% over the course of Trump’s first term, and as a result of bankruptcy proceedings stemming from legal action, Infowars was recently acquired by satirical news website The Onion, with plans to relaunch a new version of the site.