Arshad Saleh Features Editor

You’re scrolling through TikTok late at night and come across a video of some guy in front of a podcast mic telling viewers that the country is being ruined by illegal immigrants, or kids are being brainwashed by critical race theory. These may be opinions that the person genuinely holds; however, they are not presented as such. Rather, they are presented as cold, hard facts that only a ‘better’ crowd is capable of accepting. Politics in this space stops being a conversation and becomes a contest of rapid-fire soundbites that aim to provoke anger and fear. How does it affect audiences when politics becomes short, emotional, and algorithm-driven?

The algorithm behind platforms like YouTube, TikTok, and Instagram creates echo-chambers of the politics that people consume. If a video gets views, it is pushed to audiences. This algorithm is used and manipulated by political content creators who will use clickbait titles and controversial opinions to get viral clips instead of making meaningful content. The algorithm pushes viewers to extreme versions of the beliefs they consume; if you watch a clip about immigration, the next one could be a more aggressive take, and the one after could present the issue as an existential threat. The algorithm only values maximizing engagement and watch time, meaning extremity is often rewarded.

It is important for platforms to maintain free speech. However, in the present political space, the line between free speech and hate speech has sadly become blurred. Online figures like Nick Fuentes have gained traction through a tactic different from the ones previously stated. The short-form content Nick Fuentes puts out often expresses popular views, such as the Trump Administration failing to abide by civil values and human morality. Through these clips, Fuentes draws in viewers from all points of the political spectrum. His real content, however, is nothing less than hate speech that should not be platformed. Some of the views that Fuentes has presented deny the Holocaust and speak positively about white supremacist groups. Short clips do not give people the nuances and context of the people presenting them — this is what has let Fuentes mask his white nationalism as being the anti-Israel face of the right-wing, all while having no care for the humanity of Jewish or Palestinian people.

The consequences of provocative and controversial people, such as Nick Fuentes, are seen all too often. Recently, the assassination of Charlie Kirk has opened heated dialogue on free speech. Kirk used short clips to voice strong opinions that brought him the love and adoration of many conservatives. However, many on the other side viewed his opinions as bigotry. When people are polarized to this extent, this can lead to anti-immigrant protests and tragedies like Kirk’s assassination.

Short-form content allows for more creators to be seen. Politics, on the other hand, is a subject that requires analysis and understanding — it is difficult to produce short-form content without pandering to a biased audience. To preserve real discourse, audiences must be willing to look beyond the clips, slow down, seek context, and engage with complexity rather than outrage.