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Politicians and political influencers are deploying rapid-response clapbacks and viral clips to amplify messaging.

Why it matters: The internet rewards speed and personality, pushing campaigns to behave like always-on content studios.

The big picture: Candidates and commentators who can turn online moments into narratives have an edge in the modern attention economy.

Perhaps no political figure has exemplified that more than President Trump, whose social media posts can shape the day's conversation.

"The way that Trump is able to just constantly be rage-posting on Truth Social," Gen Z political commentator Adam Mockler says. "Everyone's so desensitized to it, but he still is able to dictate the narrative."

California Gov. Gavin Newsom and his team last year started mirroring Trump's posting style to mock him and Republican messaging.

Illinois Gov. JB Pritzker has also been trolling on X, using satire against Trump last year and more recently celebrating the ousting of Kristi Noem.

How it works: Successful clapbacks function less as isolated jokes and more as distribution tools for broader political messaging.

Mockler points to the late Charlie Kirk's campus debate operation as an example of online virality translating into organizing. Kirk's confrontational campus exchanges became viral social videos that directed viewers to local organizing chapters.

On the left, Mockler says, New York Mayor Zohran Mamdani succeeded in his campaign for the office because his viral content connected to a larger political identity.

"He was able to convert online energy into on-the-ground energy," Mockler says.

Between the lines: Clapbacks can fail when they imitate internet behavior that feels unnatural or disconnected from a candidate's actual political identity, says Grace Weinstein, who covers political content and culture for The Recount and Who Broke It on Substack.

"If you are a candidate and something has your name on it, it needs to be something that would come out of your mouth," Weinstein tells Axios.

Weinstein noted Connecticut Rep. Rosa DeLauro as an example of a politician whose attempts at online roasting can feel off-brand, citing an X post that simply read "pause" over a screenshot of Jesse Watters.

"Your dunks or your roasts or your jokes have to be the warhead on a larger nuke," Weinstein says. "There has to be a long-lasting impact beyond just the roast."

Reality check: Some clapbacks remain contained within hyper-online audiences.

"The debate clips break through to voters," Mockler says. "The Twitter owns, I feel like, don't break through as much."

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Political campaigns lean on viral clapbacks

The internet rewards speed and personality, pushing campaigns to behave like always-on content studios.

Illustration of two smartphones facing each other, with images of political candidates gesturing  on them. Each candidate's arm is pointing, and coming through the phone screen.

Illustration: Brendan Lynch/Axios. Stock: Getty Images

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Political campaigns lean on viral clapbacks

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