This post is part of the digital companion series to Jen Psaki’s “The Blueprint,” a new podcast examining where Democrats stand after big losses in 2024 and how they can win again. New episodes come out on Mondays. Listen wherever you get your podcasts. Below is an adapted excerpt from the Feb. 17 episode featuring Don Lemon.
In the aftermath of the election and Kamala Harris’ loss to Donald Trump, much has been said about the Democratic Party’s media strategy. For example, Harris received a lot of criticism for not appearing on Joe Rogan’s podcast, with some arguing it could have helped the then-vice president make inroads with demographic groups that she ended up losing in November.
I think that’s an oversimplification. As a candidate, you can always do more and I don’t know that if Harris had done Rogan specifically she would have beat Trump. But Rogan’s podcast is a symbol of a much larger problem within the Democratic Party when it comes to media.
Democrats, especially Democratic politicians, are still enamored with the patina of legacy media and the influence they believe it has. They lack an understanding of where the culture is going. This hasn’t always been the case. During Barack Obama’s presidency, he understood the importance of nontraditional media but no one in the Democratic Party carried that torch forward.
To some, it appears as if today’s Democrats believe they’re above nontraditional media. It’s like they’re saying, “I’m not going to go on that program because I’m better than that.” Well, that’s not true. They’re not.








