Asked about the celebrity aspect of Kasselakis’ campaign, press secretary Kountouri said it was more a reflection of how the media had covered him than what he was trying to present. She adds that the Greek media’s allegations of half-truths can be explained by the fact that Greece is the worst-ranked country in the EU in terms of press freedom, according to Reporters Without Borders, which suggests that the partisan newspapers were after him.
Social media was essential to winning the election. By leveraging virality, memetic culture and news cycles, Kasselakis was also able to raise awareness of his person and personality, an essential ingredient in the celebrity of someone previously unknown to the Greek public . Unlike other famous political figures in Greece and abroad, Kasselakis was not already known for his work in film, music or reality television. His viral success on social media platforms, and consequently mainstream media, was absolutely synonymous with his rise to fame. These direct forms of communication make it easier to “control” the narrative, says Anastasia Veneti, associate professor in political communication at Bournemouth University. “Once you’re exposed to the mainstream media and journalists start asking questions, it’s much harder to control the story,” she says. Platforms, including TikTok and Instagram, allowed Kasselakis to convey spontaneity and authenticity, even if it was far from the truth.
Using TikTok’s veneer of intimacy, Kasselakis was able to launch a political career based on a curated — some might say, fictionalized — version of himself. Much like the truncated cycles of internet stardom, Kasselakis was quickly elevated by what Veneti calls “politainment,” the fusion of politics and entertainment. Mid-morning shows that typically target housewives with recipes and celebrity gossip joined political reporters in reporting how he took his coffee; they asked the delivery drivers what pizza he ordered and how much he tipped. He was presented as a celebrity rather than a political figure.
Veneti worries that Kasselakis’s success could lead to a feedback loop in which politicians move away from traditional political discourse and electorates become more entrenched in entertainment rather than substance. Kasselakis used elements of the Trump populist playbook — as a newcomer speaking directly to the electorate and consistently appealing to reporters with his personality — albeit with less policy talk. In a 45-minute speech announcing his candidacy for the Republican Party, Trump began by mocking his opponents and then spoke at length about immigration, Iraq, Obamacare and China, among other hot-button issues . Kasselakis’ lack of substance speaks to a future in which politicians “are so dependent on communications that they train future publics to choose their leaders based on those communications” rather than on the effects those leaders will actually have on voters’ lives , she said.
However, for Kasselakis to succeed, he must demonstrate political substance, otherwise his campaign risks collapsing, especially during national elections, Veneti believes: “Politainment is a double-edged sword.”
Kasselakis has yet to translate his social media buzz into election results. Although he won the party leadership with 56 percent of the vote in September, the results of October’s local elections did not reflect his newfound popularity. The election of such a famous new leader should rally the electorate in the subsequent vote, Veneti says. Only one of the 13 administrative regions elected a Syriza-backed candidate, suggesting that Kasselakis is on “shaky ground,” says George Pleios, professor of social theory and mass communication at the National Kapodistrian University of Athens . The positive buzz around Kasselakis can “easily turn negative,” he said.
Updated 10/30/2023 at 3:00 p.m. GMT: The spelling of Eleni Grigovits’ name has been corrected.
