WASHINGTON, D.C.–Many teenagers and adults studying or working at American University this summer believe that celebrities have significant influence in shaping people’s political views, although research shows many young people are influenced by factors outside of star power.
Social media platforms including Twitter, Instagram and Snapchat have propelled celebrities’ status and many are opting to share their views on topics including immigration, elections, drug offenses and the prison system.
People like 16-year-old Nei Boney are paying attention.
“If it’s somebody I respect, I will consider their opinions,” said Boney, who considers herself a frequent social media user.
Boney, who said she uses social media frequently, often finds herself pinpointing celebrities’ talents like acting or photography before looking at the politics. Jaden Smith and Cole Sprouse make her list as influential.
This month, model Chrissy Teigen and singer husband John Legend used the social media platform Twitter to encourage fans to donate money to the American Civil Liberties Union to fight President Donald Trump’s new immigration policy separating children and families at the border.
The celebrity couple donated $72,000 for each member of their family in honor of Trump’s 72nd birthday, and urged followers to give what they could whether that was $7.20 or $720. That started a social media firestorm. It was retweeted 94,000 times and liked 414,000 times as of Tuesday.
On June 16, Teigen tweeted stating that 20,000 people had donated to the ACLU, raising more than $1 million.
Teigen, Legend, Smith, and Sprouse are just some of the names that make a political splash on Twitter, Instagram, and Snapchat.
People like Boney listen to celebrities because they respect them, while other’s like Marie Rose Belding, 22, respect people based on their policies and characteristics rather than just their fame.
“They need the brains to back it up,” Belding said.
Cory Booker, Michelle Obama, and Hillary Clinton were just some of the people she found herself often looking at when scrolling through Twitter. She stated these people needed to be “well rounded.”
Kim Kardashian West, who often uses her social media platforms to discuss her television show or items she’s promoting, successfully advocated for the prison release of 63-year-old great grandmother Alice Marie Johnson, according to West’s website.
West retweeted in October information about Johnson’s incarceration, saying “This is so unfair.”
That tweet was liked 30,652 times and retweeted 6,383 times as of Tuesday.
When discussing Johnson’s prison release Belding said she found it wonderful that a powerful celebrity such as West could use her influence in a beneficial way.
Research from Valerie R O’Regan, of California State University, concluded: “The research finds that young adults are more likely to listen to individuals other than celebrities for their own political information.”
Sara Beightol often finds herself gravitating towards people on her social media accounts who agree with her values. These people include two powerful Christian pastors: John Piper and Jonathan Leeman.
Others like Beightol, 26, and Jasmine Ellison, 20, fear the power celebrities have in the political world.
“That’s scary,” Beightol said. “That Kim Kardashian West has that much power.”