780 viewsMar 28, 2019, 09:55pm Andrew Yang And The Future Of Democracy
| | | | | | | | | | | Andrew Yang And The Future Of Democracy Gregory Ferenstein Yang is a true political outsider powered by Internet popularity | | | Gregory FerensteinContributorSharing EconomyI write about technology, politics and personal health. - - - Yang speaking WIKIMEDIA COMMONS, USER MARC NOZELL Entrepreneur-turned-presidential candidate Andrew Yang is gaining momentum for a truly unique run at the most powerful political office in America. In the last few months, Yang has gone from extreme long-shot candidate to ranking high enough in public opinion polling for FiveThirtyEight to declare him a serious contender in the Democratic Party primary. While American history has had political outsiders become contenders for President before, they were either known public figures (Donald Trump) or could finance their own campaigns (Ross Perot). Yang is neither; pure Internet fervor drives much of his fame and campaign fortune. This unusual combination of being neither known nor independently rich is an extraordinary testament for how the Internet can give political ideas and candidates power entirely on their popularity. Yang's big distinguishing factor has been to go all-in on a public policy idea, Universal Basic Income, that enjoyed a cult online following years before it became a mainstream consideration among the elite. No other notable candidate has ever given as much weight to basic income as Yang, who is proposing to give every American adult $1,000 a month no-questions-asked. The New York Times wrote about how Yang's commitment to basic income has gained him early notoriety from all corners of the Internet. I follow Yang on Facebook and on a regular basis my feed is filled with fan-generated memes proclaiming their adoration. I've rarely seen so much enthusiasm in my personal feed for a candidate and it rivals folks like Bernie Sanders. In recent months, his online fandom has translated into growing crowds and tens of thousands of individual contributors—enough to (technically) qualify him for a coveted spot at the Democratic primary debate..
