Mapping New York City influencers and funding of public messaging

Abstract

Governments around the world try to provide trusted information to citizens about the services that they provide. In France and Canada and parts of the US content creators/influencers disseminate information about health care, voting, and climate change and to reach young audiences (Reveillhac, 2025). This paper looks at the New York City influencers who communicate information about Mayor Mamdani’s programs and New York City policies and regulation. These influencers are well described by the term “political relational influencers” Goodwin et al 2023) This paper contributes to the field by providing some information about the influencer community in New York promoting city programs and policies. We show that there are two types of relationships in place. There is a Signal group which the Mayor’s office uses to communicate with a hand-picked group of influencers. There are also pilot programs aimed at using influencers on Instagram and TikTok to promote city services including immigration rights, public budgeting processes, and tenants’ rights, as well as pre-existing campaigns providing information about voting and health care. We created a list of influencers who appear to have supportive relationships with the city government, explain the different characteristics of the group, survey relevant literature and conclude with recommendations for best practices.