Snapchat Offers Original Political Coverage, 'Good Luck America' (original) (raw)
2:13 pm ET
By Nick Corasaniti
2:13 pm ET
2:13 pm ET
By
Nick Corasaniti
Photo
A screenshot of the Snapchat Good Luck America show.Credit
DES MOINES – Tucked atop the “Discover” tab in Snapchat on Thursday is a new red, white and blue icon that says,“Good Luck America.”
But it’s not a new publication with access to the coveted Discover tab on the popular social media app; it’s new original content from Snapchat, focusing on politics.
Peter Hamby, the head of news for Snapchat, introduces the viewers to the Iowa caucuses and takes them through the process, with an attitude designed to connect with the millennial-focused audience of Snapchat.
“I’m Peter, I’m a reporter, I’ve been covering politics for a very long time,” Mr. Hamby says. “I’ve crushed beers with Hillary Clinton, flipped burgers with Mitt Romney, and argued with very important people on television.”
The introduction of “Good Luck America” is Snapchat’s first foray into producing their own news programming. Previously they had a live “Story” around political events, stringing together footage from the campaign trail, but never with a narrator as involved as Mr. Hamby is in the news series.
“Good Luck America aims to provide young voters with an informative and entertaining glimpse into what life on the campaign trail is like for the candidates, their teams, and the many reporters and voters who participate along the way,” Shannon Kelly, a spokeswoman for the company, said.
Mr. Hamby begins the inaugural broadcast with a simple explanation of the nominating process and the unique role Iowa plays. “It’s weird, I know,” he says.
The show takes viewers along for the ride, past tractors and plains, and eventually, to a Chris Christie campaign stop in Iowa.
“Christie is desperate for media attention,” Mr. Hamby says. “Good thing I was there.”
He also explains to viewers some of the more nuanced elements of a modern campaign, such as field organizing. Following a “Nurses for Bernie” canvasser, Mr. Hamby encounters a woman in pink, standing at her door, talking about the issues most important to her.
He also heads to a gathering of Sanders supporters before a debate, explaining visualizations, or in the political lexicon, “viz,” and interacting with the colorful Sanders crowd.
“This Bernie event feels like a Phish show, just without the pot brownies and grilled cheese,” Mr. Hamby says.
But, in a departure from a traditional news broadcast, Mr. Hamby closes his segment not with a quotation from a campaign staff member, but with a plea to his audience.
“I know all of this seems ridiculous. But it’s important,” Mr. Hamby says directly to the camera and listing off the many issues like student debt and income inequality that are central to this election.
“Welcome to 2016,” he says. “Things are about to get really weird. Good luck America.”