The 2024 presidential election focused more on issues of identity and demographics more than substantive policy issues, said James Pindell, a political reporter for the Boston Globe.
“We are debating identity,” Pindell said. “This has been an identity election.”
Pindell was invited by the Boston College journalism program to speak on the outcome of the election in a “post-mortem” conversation on Thursday evening with Scott Helman, associate program director of journalism at BC.
Pindell said the election illuminated the diverse perspectives within the United States, which was reflected in the outcome of swing voters.
“It is a rich, complex country, and old narratives about different groups have always been reframed,” Pindell said.
Both candidates focused on different demographics and strategies for voter turnout, Pindell said.
“Harris’s bet was, ‘If I can get people who typically always vote to vote for me, I will win,’” Pindell said. “Trump convinced them that ‘If I could get people who already like me, but never vote, to vote or rarely vote, then I can win.’”
Democrats’ focus on appealing to identity over policy did not work out as intended, Pindell said. This was demonstrated by Latino men voting for Trump at unexpectedly high rates.
“[Latinos] were voting more on the economy and Republicans were trying to reach them where they were on those particular issues, rather than being driven by identity politics,” Pindell said.
As the media has evolved to include social media and podcasts in addition to traditional media like news agencies, Pindell said there is also much to consider about the impact of new types of media on the election.
“It used to be where you would microtarget on a magazine or a different type of TV show that you think demographically reaches the group of people you want to reach,” Pindell said.
Pindell said that as influencers are now reaching broader audiences than traditional news outlets, the parties are learning to adapt.
“The Democratic National Convention brought in 200 influencers and took away chairs from mainstream journalists,” Pindell said.
Just as the media is changing and adapting, the political alignment of many Americans has also shifted, Pindell said.
“We are in a moment of political realignment,” Pindell said. “Parties today are very different than they were even in 2012.”
While many people feel strongly about the outcome of this election, Pindell said that the present situation is temporary and that change is likely to come.
“I’m excited for the idea—I don’t know if it comes from the left or the right—that something different will happen,” he said.
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