Donald Trump’s upset victory in the 2016 U.S. presidential election has sparked a vigorous debate about the role of the internet in promoting the spread of misinformation.
Much of this debate has focused on fake news sites and how articles they published found an audience thanks to the algorithms used by social networks and search engines.
In January, Donald Trump will be sworn in as the 45th president of the United States.
His stunning upset victory as an outsider with no political experience shocked the world, and now everybody is trying to figure out what the Trump presidency will actually mean.
Algorithms run the internet.
On Google, an algorithm determines which sites appear in search results, and where. On Facebook, an algorithm determines which content makes it into each user’s News Feed.
Last week, I looked at how the the Democratic presidential candidates are using social media to bolster their campaigns.
Yesterday, Donald Trump became the presumptive Republican nominee.
Here’s how he has been using social media.
If you deal in online marketing or the media in general, then you’ll probably be familiar with The Trump Network, owned by business icon (and face of
the US ‘Apprentice’ show) Donald Trump.
The Trump Network is currently making a foray into affiliate marketing, pop along to the campaign’s homepage and you’ll see a short video from
Mr.Trump, explaining how his affiliate program can benefit anyone
financially, up to and including multi-millionaires like himself.
The network itself wasn’t what initially caught my eye however. Instead,
what piqued my curiosity was the way in which the network is being
promoted across the Twittersphere.
While there’s no reason to assume
that Trump or his company are directly behind it, the Trump Network does
have a number of seemingly automated feeds out there promoting the
business, a practice which indicates a fundamental
misunderstanding of the medium.