Memes and whether or not their place in United States politics is positive or negative is up for debate among students and faculty at San José State.

On Aug. 30, San José Mayor Matt Mahan wrote an op-ed about California Gov. Gavin Newsom’s recent rise in social media posts about President Donald J. Trump and public figures who have negative things to say about California. 

In the San Francisco Standard, Mahan highlighted his criticisms of how Newsom should be focused on California-based issues instead of trying to out-meme his political opponents.

“California is the most successful state and, as our governor rightly reminds detractors, the world’s fourth-largest economy, with more than $4 trillion in GDP,” Mahan said. “But maintaining our success requires a relentless focus on the facts in the real world, not a blind leap into meme land.”

There was a rise in Republican users on the social media platform X who see the site as good for democracy, from 17% of users in 2021 to 53% on the date of the article’s publishing, according to a Pew Research Center article published on June 12, 2024.

The same article mentions that 39% of democratic X users viewed the site as having a mostly negative impact on democracy. 

Karthika Sasikumar, an SJSU political science professor, wrote in an email to the Spartan Daily that the governor is now engaging in the “meme war,” and it shows what our democracy has become.
“I don’t believe it is good for democracy in the long run, since I believe that serious engagement with the issues is the foundation for the democratic form of government,” Sashikumar said in the email. “But it may be just what the Democratic party needs.”

The National Library of Medicine found that memes are low risk, high reward because both the positive and negative uses of them have a high impact in political discourse, according to a study on the function of memes in political discourse published on Nov. 6, 2024.

The study highlights that memes can aid in making sense and communicating our personal experiences, but they can also be used nefariously.

Mahan went on to explain in his opinion piece that he was taken aback by Newsom’s response to Bed Bath & Beyond’s Executive Chairman Marcus Lemonis’ announcement that the company will not open or operate retail stores in California. 

Newsom’s Press Office said in a post on X, “like most Americans, we thought Bed Bath & Beyond no longer existed.” 

Bed Bath and Beyond went bankrupt in 2023, according to an April 24, 2023 article by CNN.

Me’Shaeylah Douglas, an SJSU third-year business administration student, said they think internet trolling is funny.  

“(Newsom) has some sort of backbone to it.” Douglas said. “He’s trying to make (Trump) more lighthearted because it’s a tough subject.”

On Aug. 20, Newsom reposted a X post by Leading Report about Bed Bath Beyond’s departure, where Lemonis gave the reasons for the company’s decision, citing California’s “high taxes, high fees, and forced, unsustainable wages.”

Newsom followed up in another post writing “the company that already went bankrupt and closed every store across the country two years ago? Ok.”

Moments like this on social media are what the mayor is referring to in his op-ed.

Mahan joined the conversation on the same day with a repost of a statement made by Marcus Lemonis on X, stating, “This is serious — we are shooting ourselves in the foot and we need to acknowledge that. San Jose is open for business, we’re doing everything we can to make it easier for our employers to succeed.”

Izzy Gardon, director of communications for the office of Gavin Newsom, replied to Mahan on X, claiming Bed Bath & Beyond’s decisions were attention seeking and a “screw you” to Californians. 

She went on to cite a May 23 KTVU Fox 2 article that reports San José ranks 99th out of 100 in a WalletHub large city ranking list from best to worst cities to start a business.

Melinda Jackson, SJSU political science professor and the Dean of Undergraduate Education, wrote in an email to the Spartan Daily that democracy depends on participation and engagement. 

“Governor Newsom’s social media tone is certainly getting a lot of attention,” Jackson said. “Whether or not this attention translates into political engagement and actions such as voting in the upcoming special election here in California, remains to be seen.”