The New York City Council is preparing to scrutinize Mayor Zohran Mamdani's administration regarding its use of an encrypted messaging application to disseminate positive coverage through social media influencers. A hearing on the matter has been scheduled for September 22 by the Council's Committee on Governmental Operations, State & Federal Legislation.
Councilman Phil Wong is also planning to introduce legislation aimed at increasing transparency around the practice. His bill could mandate that influencers engaged in messaging campaigns with city agencies clearly disclose these partnerships. This initiative seeks to ensure that any posts or videos promoting city initiatives are identified as "Paid for by NYC."
The administration's outreach to nearly 200 social media influencers via a Signal app group chat, reportedly named "NYC Creators Announcements," was detailed in a recent Columbia Journalism Review report. According to the report, city officials provided daily updates, talking points, and media clips for influencers to use. Some influencers reportedly received payment through contracts with city agencies for specific messaging campaigns.
The report also indicated that some influencers participated in these campaigns out of support for the mayor's agenda and to increase their own follower count. Concerns have been raised about whether the Signal chat was configured for auto-deletion, which could conflict with city record-keeping laws. City Hall has not publicly released the list of influencers involved or details of their contracts. Wong's proposed bill also aims to identify any payments to digital creators that may have been obscured through subcontractor arrangements.
"New Yorkers don't want their tax dollars going to grifting influencers from out of state who are paid to tell us everything here is great when we know damn well it isn't," Wong stated. "If City Hall has to pay people who don’t even live here to sell New Yorkers on how wonderful New York is, that tells you everything you need to know."
Sources have suggested that scrutinizing the administration's use of unpaid influencers for positive coverage could present further challenges. One council member reportedly commented on the secrecy surrounding the practice, contrasting it with how a previous administration might have been criticized for similar actions. Questions have been raised about the use of Signal, the lack of public contract disclosures, and the involvement of groups like the Democratic Socialists of America in discussions about oversight.