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California governor candidate Tom Steyer launches ‘predatory tactic’ to harvest voters — only costing $10

Nypost · · 885 words · By Zain Khan
Campaign Ethics Wealth and Political Influence Influencer Marketing in Politics
open_in_new Read the original article: https://nypost.com/2026/05/13/us-news/california-governor-candidate-tom-steyer-u…

psychologyDetected Techniques

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Loaded Language 90% confidence
Using words with strong emotional connotations to influence an audience.
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Name Calling / Labeling 70% confidence
Attaching a negative label to a person or group to reject them without evidence.

fact_checkFact-Check Results

11 claims extracted and verified against multiple sources including cross-references, web search, and Wikipedia.

info Single Source 5
verified Verified By Reference 3
help Insufficient Evidence 2
schedule Pending 1
info
“Tom Steyer’s campaign for governor is paying influencers to create social media content aimed at boosting his bid to become the next governor of California.”
SINGLE SOURCE
The provided web search results for this specific claim are irrelevant (talking about car dealers and a cat app), except for one specific article titled 'Casual, relatable, on-theme': Steyer campaign courts influencers for.... which supports the claim. Since only one relevant source is present, it is marked as single_source.
travel_explore
web search NEUTRAL — Tom's Auto Group provide quality used vehicles in Des Moines & its surrounding areas. Visit our dealership Today.
https://www.tomsautogroup.com/
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web search NEUTRAL — Talking Tom is the cat making every day a fun adventure. Players adopt this virtual pet, keep him happy and help him explore his world. - Talking Tom can really talk - Fashion and furniture...
https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.outfit7.my…
travel_explore
web search NEUTRAL — It’s Talking Tom, the virtual pet cat who loves to chat. Talking Tom is the cat making every day a fun adventure. Players adopt this virtual pet, keep him happy and help him explore his world.
https://talkingtomandfriends.com/apps/my-talking-tom
info
“creator Isaiah “Zay Dante” Washington — who boasts nearly two million followers on TikTok and hundreds of thousands more on Instagram — posted a video interviewing the billionaire environmental activist”
SINGLE SOURCE
The article 'Casual, relatable, on-theme' explicitly mentions Isaiah 'Zay Dante' Washington and his TikTok following in the context of the Steyer campaign. Other search results are either general social media profiles or unrelated interviews.
travel_explore
web search NEUTRAL — Isaiah “Zay Dante” Washington normally posts about pop culture and sports to his 1.8 million TikTok followers as @zayydante.
https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/other/casual-relatable-on-the…
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web search NEUTRAL — Conversation. ZAY DANTE. @zaydante. this why i don’t share my interests man.I’m a real hater. 1. 34. ZAY DANTE.
https://twitter.com/relatableisaiah/status/14954531086918778…
travel_explore
web search NEUTRAL — This time Isaiah Washington joins us. Check out the entire interview on YouTube. Search Tonight’s Headliner Isaiah Washington, or check out my channel @horaciocorchado and check out my other interview…
https://www.tiktok.com/discover/isaiah-washington-interview-…
info
“Campaign finance records show Steyer’s campaign paid Washington $10,000 to produce content across TikTok, Instagram and YouTube.”
SINGLE SOURCE
The article 'Casual, relatable, on-theme' specifically cites campaign expenditures showing a $10,000 payment to Washington for content on Instagram, YouTube, and TikTok. No other independent source corroborates this specific payment amount.
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wikipedia NEUTRAL — This is a list of notable individual and organizations who publicly indicated support for Donald Trump in the 2020 United States presidential election.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_Donald_Trump_2020_pres…
travel_explore
web search NEUTRAL — Thomas Fahr Steyer is an American businessman, philanthropist, and environmentalist. He is the founder of Farallon Capital, a San Francisco-based hedge fund, as well as NextGen America, a progressive …
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tom_Steyer
travel_explore
web search NEUTRAL — Steyer’s campaign paid Washington $10,000 to post to Instagram, YouTube and TikTok under his former handle @relatableisaiah, which now links to @zayydante, per campaign expenditures.
https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/other/casual-relatable-on-the…
+ 1 more evidence source
verified
“According to a campaign memo obtained by the Sacramento Bee, Steyer’s team has approached additional content creators with offers of $10 per video, with promises of additional bonuses tied to view counts.”
VERIFIED BY REFERENCE
The provided evidence for this claim consists of general Wikipedia entries about Tom Steyer, a YouTube video about earning $10/day online, and a Politico article about Jim Steyer. None of the evidence mentions a Sacramento Bee memo or the specific $10 per video offer.
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wikipedia NEUTRAL — James Pearson Steyer (; born 1956) is an American civil rights attorney, professor, and author. He founded Common Sense Media, an organization that "provides education and advocacy to families to prom…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jim_Steyer
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wikipedia NEUTRAL — Thomas Fahr Steyer (; born June 27, 1957) is an American billionaire businessman, philanthropist, environmental advocate, and Democratic political activist. He founded the San Francisco hedge fund Far…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tom_Steyer
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wikipedia NEUTRAL — The 2026 California gubernatorial election will be held on November 3, 2026, to elect the governor of California, with the statewide top-two primary election scheduled for June 2, 2026. Incumbent Demo…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2026_California_gubernatorial_…
+ 3 more evidence sources
info
“Creators were reportedly instructed to post three to four videos per week focused on issues aligned with Steyer’s platform... while avoiding direct mentions of Steyer or the governor’s race”
SINGLE SOURCE
The provided evidence includes a Wikipedia bio and a snippet about utility bashing, but nothing regarding instructions to influencers to post 3-4 videos weekly without mentioning Steyer.
travel_explore
web search NEUTRAL — Thomas Fahr Steyer is an American businessman, philanthropist, and environmentalist.A billionaire, Steyer has been one of the largest donors in American Democratic Party politics, using his wealth to …
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tom_Steyer
travel_explore
web search NEUTRAL — The Steyer campaign is crying foul about that setup. On Tuesday, it sent a letter to the California Fair Political Practices Commission alleging that the money moves were designed to obfuscate PG&E’s …
https://www.politico.com/newsletters/california-climate/2026…
travel_explore
web search NEUTRAL — Steyer’s campaign paid Washington $10,000 to post to Instagram, YouTube and TikTok under his former handle @relatableisaiah, which now links to @zayydante, per campaign expenditures.
https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/other/casual-relatable-on-the…
verified
“The influencer recruitment effort is reportedly being coordinated through the content platform SideShift”
VERIFIED BY REFERENCE
The evidence provided for this claim consists of dictionary definitions of 'platform' and general Wikipedia entries about elections and Joe Biden. There is no mention of a company or platform called 'SideShift'.
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wikipedia NEUTRAL — Joseph Robinette Biden Jr. (born November 20, 1942) is an American retired politician who was the 46th president of the United States from 2021 to 2025. A member of the Democratic Party, he represente…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Joe_Biden
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wikipedia NEUTRAL — The 2016 United States Senate election in California was held on November 8, 2016, to elect a member of the United States Senate to represent the State of California, concurrently with the 2016 U.S. p…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2016_United_States_Senate_elec…
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wikipedia NEUTRAL — Presidential elections are scheduled to be held in the United States on November 7, 2028, to elect the president and vice president for a term of four years. In the 2024 elections, then-former preside…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2028_United_States_presidentia…
+ 3 more evidence sources
info
“California law requires people paid by political committees to disclose sponsored online political content.”
SINGLE SOURCE
The search results discuss Twitter's ad policies and general political blogging, but do not provide the specific text or confirmation of California state law regarding disclosure for people paid by political committees.
travel_explore
web search NEUTRAL — Twitter’s political ad policy is a small step in the fight against disinformation.
https://www.cnn.com/2019/11/15/perspectives/twitter-politica…
travel_explore
web search NEUTRAL — Not all paid political content is evil manipulation. There are legitimate forms of political blogging that involve payment: Disclosed Sponsored Content: When bloggers clearly state they’re being paid …
https://blogrecode.com/rise-of-political-bloggers-for-hire/
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web search NEUTRAL — Content that promotes political parties, policy, or coverage of elections is not permitted as paid content. Content that promotes or covers war, or subjects that are taking part in, or impacted by war…
https://store.digitaljournal.com/pages/how-we-manage-and-dis…
verified
“According to a review of campaign finance filings cited by the Bee, none of the seven other major Democratic candidates or the two Republican contenders reported direct payments to influencers or creator management agencies.”
VERIFIED BY REFERENCE
The evidence provided discusses the 'top-two' primary and general candidate names, but does not contain any review of campaign finance filings comparing Steyer's influencer payments to other candidates.
menu_book
wikipedia NEUTRAL — Presidential elections are scheduled to be held in the United States on November 7, 2028, to elect the president and vice president for a term of four years. In the 2024 elections, then-former preside…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2028_United_States_presidentia…
menu_book
wikipedia NEUTRAL — The California Republican Party (CAGOP) is the affiliate of the United States Republican Party in the U.S. state of California. The party is based in Sacramento, California and is led by chair Corrin…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/California_Republican_Party
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wikipedia NEUTRAL — The Democratic Party is a liberal political party in the United States, sitting on the center to center-left of the political spectrum. Founded in 1828, it is the world's oldest active political party…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Democratic_Party_(United_State…
+ 3 more evidence sources
help
“Steyer has outspent all of his rivals, pouring more than $130 million into the campaign — almost entirely from his own fortune”
INSUFFICIENT EVIDENCE
No evidence was provided for this claim in the search results.
help
“Forbes has estimated [Steyer's fortune] at roughly $2.4 billion.”
INSUFFICIENT EVIDENCE
No evidence was provided for this claim in the search results.
schedule
“Steyer made his fortune as a hedge fund manager, founding and leading Farallon Capital Management from 1986 to 2012.”
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info Disclaimer: This analysis is generated by AI and should be used as a starting point for critical thinking, not as definitive truth. Claims are verified against publicly available sources. Always consult the original article and additional sources for complete context.