‘Talk with the People’ starts May 21.
If you live in a major city, it’s not uncommon for the highest elected official to have a regular broadcast slot to speak to locals. Mayor of New York Zohran Mamdani is no different, although he’s not just turning up on New York Public Radio to engage with constituents. Polygon reports the social media savvy politico is launching a Twitch series called Talk with the People under the official nyc_mayor account. Starting may 21 at 4PM ET, Mayor Mamdani will answer questions from the chat about local issues. Even the show’s title is steeped in history: It’s the same as the WNYC radio show hosted by Fiorello LaGuardia between 1941 and 1945.
Naturally, given the need to reach voters, the show will be streamed on every other major platform you can name, including YouTube and Facebook. It’s a wise strategy given the diffusion of audiences that may have previously congregated around public radio or TV. But while those platforms had the benefit (and burden) of editorial filters between participants and the official, this could turn into a free for all. Especially given Twitch has what can only be described as a deeply internet-brained culture, albeit one Mamdani himself is already able to grapple with.
That Mamdani chose Twitch as the home base for the show, which will also go out on Instagram, TikTok, X and Bluesky, is equally interesting. After all, the service is owned by Amazon, the founder of which Mamdani has been regularly and openly critical of. A recent TNR report claimed Amazon founder Jeff Bezos had directed the Washington Post (which he owns) to discredit Mamdani’s leadership. Evidence, if more were needed, that the internet really could do with an independent, public alternative for situations just like this.
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