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But in reality, this entire operation, which probably has its own high cost, resulted in a complete failure, as instead of increasing voters, it decreased them.
Today's debate with the heads of the two prosecutors' offices in the Assembly seemed to force Albanian politics into the rut of its political making.
For a long time, Albanian politics, especially the opposition, has delegated its mission and profession to influencers with lots of "K" on social networks.
Who, with a post with slang words, a photomontage, and painful music, go viral in the virtual world of the cosmos, frustrated, dissatisfied, upset with the situation in the country, the government, or many other troubles that here in our country do not end, but increase daily, especially for the majority of the population.
In a normal logic, politics should listen to the voice of the people, absorb it as much as possible, process it as a platform, become their representative, and create a governing alternative, precisely based on these perceptions.
But as happened with the advent of the social media era, the first to exploit the opportunities of this infinite world were not the people with fewer opportunities and financial means, and therefore more problems, but precisely the most powerful, the richest, the most powerful, the most feared, and the most myth-mongering.
The virtual world quickly became a territory where all-powerful jackals roam, from crime to politics, finance, or showbiz, as they have the means and opportunities to exploit this platform, giving and receiving milk in mass production.
This virtual world was successfully used in 2013, after the solutions when the so-called protests over chemical weapons erupted. Where through external sponsorship we saw a push, a creation of a phenomenon, that in reality and in the territory was not that big.
Later, the networks were used as a powerful political weapon to attack and bomb the ambassadors of the US and European Union countries in Tirana, who supported the installation of a judicial reform.
Even today, if you look at the pages of the US and EU embassies, you can find old posts from 2016 to 2023, where a kennel of nameless and faceless accounts use the most savage arsenal of Albanian language against Donald Lu, Yuri Kim, Romana Vlahutin, or even other EU diplomats.
Meanwhile, many politicians use as supporters not capable and energetic people in their parties, but influencers taken from the world of showbiz. Ilir Meta's LSI was quite active in these operations, where comedians, or pink columnists, were used as PR "captains" to attract as many followers as possible.
These influencers, of course, have a lot of penetration in the networks, making an almost daily effect and noise in the public. Since even the usual media, such as online newspapers or even televisions on social networks, get their usual food. Classic reporting has long been lost and everything has become uniform like the already identical faces of the VIP characters that cover our screens.
But in reality, this entire operation, which probably has its own high cost, resulted in a complete failure, as instead of increasing voters, it decreased them.
Influencers were not invented in our country in political use. They even continue to be active and vocal in major Western countries, starting with the USA. But they often had the opposite effect. In the USA, the Democratic Party not only did not benefit from the big Hollywood influences, but was attacked and punished as elitist.
Meanwhile, Donald Trump's MAGA cleverly used young influencers who were not known for their luxurious lives. Energetic and politically talented people like the late Charlie Kirk were a hurricane of influence for Republicans. Meanwhile, at the top of the list is Donald Trump himself, a communication monster who has used the media since his early days and has managed to turn it into a strategy to enter politics. President Trump's children have divided the roles with surgical perfection in their influence on social networks. One is more radical for the strong MAGA followers, the other is more calm and aristocratic, the other speaks to the simpler and smaller audience of youth and the world of teenagers.
In Europe, too, there are leaders who are masters of communication, especially in the new digital age. Beppe Grillo's 5 Star Movement, created in the computer brain of Gianroberto Casaleggio, became a political hurricane that led Italy for 4 years. But today, precisely because it was not a party but a social phenomenon, 5 Star is in crisis, so Giuseppe Conte, after the quarrel with Grillo, is turning it into a party with clear structures and a leftist orientation.
We also have really powerful influencers in politics here. Edi Rama is the most important in his viral penetration on the network, then comes Sali Berisha. An undisputed talent in his ability as an invasive and efficient influencer.
But influence is one thing and political reality is another. Sali Berisha has great communication power and penetration not only among his loyal followers, but also among his opponents.
Influence is one thing, popularity another, and the ability to lead even another. Albin Kurti, even today, who is ruined, has a great influence, greater than all other leaders. He even showed himself to be politically agile 4 years ago to devour the votes of a faction of the LDK when he received 51% of the votes, even more than Ibrahim Rugova. But in leadership it turned out to be a real disaster. Leaders like Viktor Orban or Recep Tayyip Erdogan are not viral influencers on social networks, but in politics they are proving to be masters of the highest class.
Meanwhile, even in the partial local elections, really only in Tirana, as it does not seem to participate in the other 6 municipalities, the opposition has unleashed its influencers on the territory and in the battle. It seems that everything is happening because it is being used as a provisional game to hide a plan that is afraid of real politics, that of discussion and the extraction of leaders not by the "K"s of 'likes' and comments, but by ideas and the ability to implement them.
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