"Editorial authority" or "brand authority" was a term used quite consistently at my former place of business. It was most often utilized to determine the breadth of equity that a brand had when considering that brand's world of influence. Said simply, the question we often asked clients was "if your brand were a magazine, what would you report on?" or "what would you have the consumer's approval to report on?" The answer was then used to construct the brand's editorial authority.
In the days since Friday and the Inauguration, and even before during this bizarre election cycle, I've observed that many individuals in my social media feeds feel that political commentary is definitely within their editorial authority. I'm sure the logic is "this is my country, he's the President...thus, I have authority to comment on him and his administration." Yet, I'm struck by my acceptance, or lack of, that editorial authority. I'm certainly more apt to give Gerald Seib of the Wall Street Journal or David Brooks of the New York Times my rapt attention on opinions pertaining to the Trump administration than I do Seth Davis, CBS Sports and Sports Illustrated college basketball expert, or Jeff Rosen, sports editor, Kansas City Star, both who have used social media for their own political commentary. And, my gosh, at the local and personal level of social media, how many of us have stated or thought about stepping away from social media given the number of "friends" who are commenting on everything associated with this Trump-ian world we're in? Whatever happened to photos of babies, videos of cats and the self-absorbed who apparently thought I cared about seeing a photo of what they had for dinner!?
Is the world in which we are living - a dystopian one if you believe our new President - a topic on which all of us can claim editorial authority? Apparently so, as judged by the pervasive tweets and posts from seemingly everyone that I follow or friend.
My wish is that everyone step back, take a deep breath, and determine their personal brand's editorial authority, particularly as relates to our new reality. When literally everyone is commenting, it all becomes noise.
If you are passionate about not normalizing Trump, fine - use social media as a platform for discourse and opinion. If you are passionate about expressing civil disobedience through organized marches or other outlets, great - use social media to post photos of you taking action. But, please, can we be fact-based, civil and intentional in our posts as opposed to the moron on my Facebook feed who claimed that "Trump got over a million fat women walking, nationwide, on his first full day in office"?
Clearly, this Facebook acquaintance (how can I call him a "friend") felt he had that editorial authority. I, his consumer, felt differently. The "de-friend" and "unfollow" buttons are useful tools at times like this.
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