Popular YouTube show, Hot Ones, in which celebrities are interviewed while eating increasingly spicy chicken wings, has been accused of turning down a request from the campaign of U.S. Vice President Kamala Harris. The decision was revealed by leaders of Harris’ campaign on liberal-leaning podcast Pod Save America, who said the show simply “didn’t want to delve into politics.”
Harris’ Media Presence and Overcoming Obstacles
While Harris had booked appearances on mainstream media outlets like The Drew Barrymore Show, The Late Show with Stephen Colbert, The View, The Howard Stern Show, and Alex Cooper’s Call Her Daddy podcast, her campaign couldn’t gain much ground with some of the non-traditional media platforms. She even appeared in a surprise Saturday Night Live skit with Maya Rudolph playing her. Still, Hot Ones was missing from her media circuit.
Why the Rejection Occurred
Stephanie Cutter, a senior Harris campaign strategist, said Evans’ show has always held to the position of excluding political material. “Hot Ones, which is a great show, they didn’t wanna do any politics, so they weren’t going to take us or him,” Cutter said, referring to former President Donald Trump.
The campaign further reported that similar rejections were faced from other non-political media outlets, which contrasted with the ease Trump enjoyed in securing such appearances. “I don’t think he had the same problem,” said Jen O’Malley Dillon, Harris’ Campaign Chairwoman. “He certainly was able to tap into some cultural elements in ways that we couldn’t.”
Trump’s Media Strategy
While Harris was unable to gain access to alternative media outlets, Trump had managed to appear on almost every other platform. He appeared on The Joe Rogan Experience for a three-hour conversation, something the Harris campaign had tried and failed to secure. “We offered to do it in Austin, people should know that. It didn’t work out,” said David Plouffe, former Obama campaign manager and Harris campaign advisor, explaining the campaign’s efforts.
Other shows and interviews he appeared on included Break 50 with golfer Bryson DeChambeau, This Past Weekend with Theo Von, Six Feet Under with Mark “The Undertaker” Calaway, and Bussin with the Boys by Barstool Sports.
Media Landscape and Cultural Divide
Thus, the decision of Hot Ones to avoid political figures underlies broader trends in media where such forums desire and strive to remain apolitical. At the same time, it points out the lack of equality in media representation between political figures from each party, with Trump’s cultural appeal being a decisive factor that helped him receive media attention.
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