HOT NEW POLITICAL TREND ALERT!

Subcontracting 'influencers' to hype up your big event is a bipartisan effort.

Anna Moneymaker/Getty Images

While the now-trite observation that “the internet isn’t real life” may not fully apply anymore, there remains a kernel of truth in the argument that many of the things that take place online are, ultimately, not really important when it comes to how most people actually exist in this world. Have you ever tried explaining some dramatic bit of internet gossip with someone who isn’t already terminally online? They look at you like you’ve just explained your favorite method for cooking a labradoodle.

It’s alarming, then, that leading politicians are increasingly turning to internet influencers — the most digitally-addled people in existence — not only as salespeople to help spread the good (or not) word about existing policies but as advisers to help actually help shape their agendas. And not just any influencers: some of the most toxic and annoying online denizens around.