GOP Youth Chair Offers Donald Trump Three Ideas to Engage Gen Z

ollowing an election win that saw Donald Trump improve his support among young voters, Brilyn Hollyhand—the 18-year-old chair of the Republican National Committee's Youth Advisory Council, who aided in that victory—shared exclusively with Newsweek three suggestions for how the President-elect can carry that momentum into the White House.

Hollyhand, a national political commentator and Alabama high school student, took charge of the Advisory Council in January 2023. He's since spearheaded efforts to bring a content creator outreach program to the 2024 Republican National Convention and campaign while also urging Trump appear on podcasts and in TikToks.

Trump improved his margin among voters aged 18 to 29 by 10 points, jumping from 36 percent support in 2020 to 46 percent in 2024, according to an analysis by the Center for Information & Research on Civic Learning and Engagement at Tufts University. He won 56 percent of young men and 40 percent of young women.

Hollyhand believes those gains came in part because of the campaign's unconventional media strategy. To ensure Republicans continue improving their support among young Americans, Hollyhand believes the President-elect should hold a monthly podcast, start a White House influencer program and continue appearing on TikTok. The interview below about these ideas has been edited for brevity and clarity.

Modern "Fireside Chats"

Hollyhand: I'm recommending to the President and his team that Trump should host a monthly podcast. He could do it from the White House and get his message out directly to American people. I think we can call this a modern day [President Franklin Delano Roosevelt-style] Fireside Chat. It could be 30 minutes once a month, some type of sit-down, longer-form conversation. I think it's what we need. We need more conversations. That's how we heal this divide in America.

Newsweek: As you mention, there is precedent for this—FDR regularly communicated over radio throughout his presidency—but it's not something we've seen in recent years. Why should the President invest his time in something like this and what does a modern format look like?

Hollyhand: You could go the route of bringing in a Joe Rogan-type person to moderate it or Elon Musk. But really, I don't think that Donald Trump needs to bring any star power. I think he can just sit in front of a camera and talk for 30 minutes, and it would be the most viral thing that's ever touched the internet. I like the idea of him answering the American people's questions. I like the idea of maybe children writing in letters and the President answering them. I think something like that would be a cool format for people to feel like the president is listening to them.

Newsweek: Republican Senator Ted Cruz of Texas hosts a regular podcast and has been criticized for it, with some calling it a distraction from his duties as an elected official. How do you respond to that concern regarding this proposal?

Hollyhand: I think there are two types of people in Washington. There are workhorses, and there are show-horses. Very rarely, you get some that overlap. Ted Cruz is not somebody that shies away from Fox News appearances, but he's also somebody that doesn't put out meaningless legislation. If Donald Trump has enough time to do the work for his constituents, the American people, and film a 30-minute podcast a month, I see no problem with this. This is an opportunity where he can be a workhorse and a show-horse.

Newsweek: There's extensive reporting on the President's proclivity to state falsehoods. Beyond that, it's easy for anyone to misstate a fact or get numbers wrong when speaking unscripted for an extended period. How would the issue of fact-checking be addressed in this forum?

Hollyhand: I don't think this should replace press briefings. He can still have experts in the briefing to get out specific numbers on, say, border control or the economy, but this is the opportunity for a less formal conversation, for a more down to earth, "Here is what I'm seeing as a president; here's what I want to relate to you; here's what I'm focusing on this week; and here's what I would like your input on." Then the next episode he reads that input. I think that would be really cool and a format that is desperately needed.

Influencers in the White House

Hollyhand: I think President Trump and Karoline Leavitt, our new press secretary, should credential influencers and make a creator program for the White House, having them come into the press briefing room and ask questions directly to the president, directly to his press team. Have them cover White House events. Have them be there, whether they're filming TikToks or hosting something on their podcast. Having Gen Z in the room is how we can communicate our message to Gen Z.

Newsweek: The White House already has news media of varying ideological slants in the White House. What are the advantages of bringing content creators into the fold?

Hollyhand: I think having influencers in the briefing room to ask questions that Gen Z really cares about would be effective and beneficial for both sides of Gen Z, for our more liberal friends and our more conservative friends. I would say, as somebody that is a fan of the Newsmax and Fox News outlets, they don't always ask every question that Gen Z cares about, nor does CNN. So having somebody that could represent Gen Z and ask questions that Gen Z cares about would be mutually beneficial.

Newsweek: Official government carries different sets of formalities, procedure and vetting than political campaigns. How would influencers be vetted and decided upon? How do you prevent this from becoming too extensive and chaotic?

Hollyhand: Whether you give them a hard pass and have them sit in a chair or have them Zoom-in, the press secretary's office could pick two or three influencers per briefing and give them the opportunity to come in. This isn't something that has to happen every briefing. This could be once a week or a few times a month. The press secretary's office can pick a few people, and I think Karoline would do a great job.

Newsweek: Given the press' role in defending democracy, some in the industry are skeptical of such innovations because it can create a situation where an already limited amount of time is being carved away for potentially less serious and scrutinizing efforts. How do you think about that concern and how should it be addressed?

Hollyhand: I think if you approach it in that creators are not at every briefing, but there are some special briefings where they can be a part—I think that would be a cool opportunity. Let them ask the questions that young people want to ask and give them a seat at the table. I think that would be the appropriate way to go about that; still let the press corps lead the briefings on a regular basis.

Newsweek: It sounds like this is not something that would be included in the existing press apparatus. Rather, it would be a new communications program. Is that correct?

Hollyhand: Absolutely, yeah. On the campaign, we still had the Trump Campaign-credential press pool that would be at every single event. And then we had specialized events that the Youth Advisory Council invited our creators to.

Newsweek: You mentioned earlier that such a program could be beneficial to liberals and conservatives. How do you ensure a diverse program, with diversity extending beyond the left-right political spectrum?

Hollyhand: A lot of the content creators at [2024 Democratic] presidential campaign events were just friendly, so there weren't any questions asked other than, "What's your favorite ice cream flavor, Mr. President?" We have to take a different approach. We have to modernize it. Modernizing it means bring in friendly and unfriendly voices. The actual press briefing room has friendly and non-friendly voices. So, I think this alternative pool should have the same thing. The Press Secretary's office can make the commitment to do that.

Continuing With TikTok

Hollyhand: Trump has this ability to reach millions of Americans on TikTok, and I don't think he should let that go away. He can sit and film a TikTok from the Oval Office, he can have TikToks clipped from his press conferences, whatever he can do to use the platform that he's already built to get his message out to millions of Americans. I don't think he should let it go to waste.

Newsweek: The President-elect originally opposed Chinese-owned TikTok for national security concerns but has become a staunch defender since realizing its value on the campaign trail. Nonetheless, Republicans like Florida Senator and Secretary of State-nominee Marco Rubio, Missouri Senator Josh Hawley, and members of House Select Committee on Strategic Competition between the United States and the Chinese Communist Party have maintained concerns. How do you respond?

Hollyhand: If some of the Republican lawmakers that you named have a problem with TikTok, they should acknowledge they wouldn't be in the majority come January if Donald Trump never got on TikTok. Some lawmakers rode his coattails and won because of his landslide. If those Republican lawmakers have a problem with TikTok, think it's a threat to security, and don't want to get on it, we're not asking them to. They can continue with their Twitter or Instagram accounts, but Trump has a following on TikTok that is loyal and is bipartisan. Those young people want to hear from him directly.

Newsweek: It's clear TikTok is an influential platform that offers a unique way to interact with the public. However, it remains owned by ByteDance, which must answer to the Chinese government. National security officials warn that dynamic means the app could be weaponized against the U.S. How do you reconcile that dynamic?

Hollyhand: I think Trump has been clear that he would love TikTok to be owned by an American company. And so, I think that that could be something that happens. As for security concerns, I'm not saying that the same phone that has his account downloaded to should be the same phone that has the nuclear codes, but I think that the President being on the platform, in a secure way, is a great way to involve younger generations.

Newsweek: How do you personally think about the issues surrounding TikTok? You indicated you'd like to see the app owned by an American company but ultimately want it to stay around, even under its current ownership. Is that how you see things?

Hollyhand: Yes, and I am an advocate for free speech. President Trump is as well. I think because of that value, that's why he's putting this type of action into place to stop the TikTok ban. I think Americans should have the freedom to speak their minds on any platform they choose. TikTok is a platform that they're choosing. President Trump is the President-elect, and he's defending the First Amendment. I think part of doing that is by trying to stop this TikTok ban.

Newsweek: American social media platforms like Facebook, YouTube, X and others are blocked in China. If ByteDance refuses to sell TikTok, do you think there's a potential deal to be made there?

Hollyhand: My ultimate goal is for TikTok to be owned by an American company. But absolutely. I think that the Art of the Deal negotiator that Trump is can totally get something worked out, especially with Elon Musk being his right-hand man.

Newsweek: Is there anything else you'd like to say in defense of Trump staying on TikTok and the other ideas you've laid out?

Hollyhand: Those opposed to these ideas say that young people really didn't vote for Trump because of these innovations. Trump's success with youth voters wasn't a fluke. He worked hard for it, and my peers want to continue to see him and interact with him. We don't want this to stop just because he's not campaigning. So, whether that's hosting an official White House podcast, partnering with influencers in the briefing room, or TikToking from the Oval Office, this is how President Trump can retain these new voters in our party for generations to come.