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A popular marketing firm that works with influencers to promote brands and political causes reportedly paid right-leaning influencers and ‘independent journalists’ on X/Instagram to post against proposed restrictions on using food stamps to buy soda—without disclosing they were paid.

Examples of some posts and their messaging.

Some shit you should know before you read: If you didn’t know, HHS Secretary Kennedy and Agriculture Secretary Rollins are leading a push to overhaul the SNAP program by cutting off benefits for unhealthy items like sugary drinks, processed foods, candy, and snacks. Kennedy’s been especially vocal, arguing the federal government shouldn’t subsidize what he calls “poison,” and says SNAP and school lunch programs should better align with public health goals. He’s openly said that his goal is to ban soda, chips, ice cream, and other unhealthy shit from being purchased with SNAP benefits. By doing this, he argues it would push recipients toward more nutritious options. Despite this, some argue the government shouldn’t be dictating what people on SNAP can and can’t buy, with critics calling it “government overreach.”

What’s going on now: According to internal messages and content briefs, right-leaning influencers and political commentators were paid anywhere from several hundred to over $1,000 per post to oppose a policy backed by Secretary Kennedy that would prohibit SNAP benefits from being used to purchase soda. Talking points included references to President Trump’s well-known love for Diet Coke and framed the proposal as “anti-Trump.” None of the influencers disclosed they were paid, leading followers to believe the posts were organic—and that a broader soda ban was being considered. 

An internal memo circulating on X. 

Some have claimed this campaign is linked to ‘big beverage,’ though there’s no concrete evidence—only speculation. We’ve reached out to several major beverage associations for comment.

In addition to this, there appears to be another campaign being launched by “PragerU,” which asks users to “vote” on the issue by submitting their first name, last name, and email address.

Screenshot of the PragerU campaign.

Digging deeper: This isn’t the first time Influenceable has been tied up in some shit. According to the Texas Tribune, Influenceable was reportedly involved in a paid campaign to sway public opinion during the impeachment proceedings against Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton. The Texas Tribune claimed that political influencers were paid to post in his defense, framing the impeachment as a politically motivated attack by establishment Republicans and Democrats. Talking points highlighted Paxton’s loyalty to President Trump and his efforts to challenge the 2020 election.

But this isn’t just a Republican thing—Democrats have also relied heavily on marketing firms to push their agenda too.

The other side: When President Biden was in office, the Democratic National Committee paid influencers, some of whom occasionally hint that they’re  “independent,” to promote his legislative agenda, including climate change initiatives, student debt relief, and the Inflation Reduction Act.

Priorities USA, a major Democratic super PAC supporting Biden’s reelection, allocated $1 million to fund a paid influencer campaign targeting young and local voters in battleground states. This marked the PAC’s first known jump into paying content creators. The strategy involved compensating over 100 influencers to share pro-Biden/Harris content across TikTok and Instagram.

Various influencers and political commentators were briefed on Priorities’ internal polling and messaging priorities. Talking points included core Democratic themes like abortion access, voting rights, and “threats to democracy.” Those who were involved had to receive approval before posting the content.

Attempts to contact Influenceable for comment were unsuccessful.

A note from the writer: As I said at the beginning of the year, I want to encourage you all to diversify your news sources. Over the past three years, I’ve occasionally warned about both the upside and downside of the rise of independent journalism. As I wrote back in January, in a post pinned at the top of our page: “Some of the loudest voices today—on both sides—have sold their souls to political parties, super PACs, or organizations with clear agendas. This is just as bad as the major news outlets that have lost public trust and are now crumbling.”

For the OGs who’ve been with us since 2023, you may remember when I disclosed that a political super PAC offered us a significant amount of money to post articles favoring a particular candidate during the primaries. Obviously, we declined. But that moment made me wonder—if we’re getting those offers and saying no, how many others are getting them too and saying yes?

There’s a silent war going on that many people don’t see—and it’s been going on for years. It’s the battle for your mind. And in that fight, many players exist: corporations, political organizations, super PACs, and governments. This isn’t an opinion; it’s an ugly truth on both sides of the aisle.

Be you & think freely.

– Jon