College student blasts ‘dead on arrival’ effort by Democrats to win back Gen Z
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Wesleyan College student Ethan Norton argued in an op-ed for The Washington Post that Democrats are missing the point in their efforts to win back young voters.
“Democrats talk all the time about courting young voters, but they’re losing my generation because they’re completely missing the point. Not only do they have young voter problems, they also have attention problems.” he wroteHe noted the fingers being pointed within the party following the loss of former Vice President Kamala Harris. “It’s not just what they’re facing, but also how they communicate. Shouting ‘constitutional crisis’ won’t win votes; it’s not enough to get likes.”
Norton wrote that he was a senior in college and was studying media and film. The Wesleyan student wrote that he found himself scrolling past “lackluster Democratic content” and noticed more engaging conservative content.
“It’s like looking at your dinner companion’s unhealthy meal; you know it’s not good for you, but it looks so much better than what’s on your plate,” he said.
Students and voters walk past a Vote sign near a polling place during the 2024 presidential election on November 5, 2024 in Austin, Texas. (Sergio Flores/Bloomberg)
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The student specifically pointed to Senator Chuck Schumer, DY, and his website.
“Take Senate Minority Leader Charles E. Schumer’s website, which appears frozen in the 1980s: A slow, blurry photo montage scrolls through images of the New York Democrat from a podium or a press conference. At the top is a line of text: ‘See where Chuck is and what he’s doing,'” Norton wrote.
He quipped that nothing excites Gen Z more than a weekly travel plan.
“Schumer’s approach is dead on arrival. As every content creator has ever said: Fumble the first few seconds and your audience is gone,” he continued.
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The student also pointed to the following all-caps headline on Schumer’s website: “SCHUMER SOUNDS THE ALARM: SENATOR DEMANDS IMMEDIATE RETURN TO PROTECT 140,000 PEOPLE, WHILE TRUMP HIRES PERSONNEL FROM 9/11 HEALTH PROGRAM AND RE-TASKS THEM TO ICE.”
“Irony? No alarms. Too many words in all caps. Bureaucratic and inert. Why not create real visual urgency? Make it scrollable with ambient noise. Layer in 15-second clips of survivors telling human stories before anyone scrolls,” Norton argued.
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People wear Vote T-Shirts as they attend the Fashion for Our Future rally to raise awareness about voting during Fashion Week in New York City on September 6, 2024. (Andrea Renault/AFP)
Schumer’s office did not immediately respond to Fox News Digital’s request for comment.
The New York senator has been repeatedly mocked by comedians and commentators over the past two years for his efforts to oppose President Donald Trump.
Norton gave some examples of the more interesting Democrats online, including New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani, Rep. Alexandria Ocaiso-Cortez, DY, and Sen. Bernie Sanders, I-VT.
“Even Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vermont), who is almost a digital native, comes up with YouTube videos, Instagram clips and shareable quotes every day,” he said.
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Norton also called out Harris for passing up an opportunity to appear on Joe Rogan’s podcast during the 2024 presidential campaign. Podcasts like Rogan’s are clipped, retweeted and “memeified,” creating a flood of content, he said.
Norton claimed the GOP doesn’t have an ideological hold on young voters, but it does capture their attention.
