Neil Young鈥檚 recent endorsement of Liberal leader Mark Carney聽caused a stir here in Canada and led to juicy headlines for numerous media outlets, including the Star.
The Canadian icon and lyricist behind timeless gems like the song “Old Man,” penned an open letter to Carney in the lead up to Monday鈥檚 federal election. Young told Carney he supports him and exhorted the Liberal leader to use his 鈥渃hops鈥 and his 鈥済uts鈥 to fight for Canada鈥檚 future. Carney is the best person to lead Canada as it faces 鈥渢hreats to its very existence鈥 from the U.S., Young wrote.
There鈥檚 no definitive evidence to show that celebrity endorsements of politicians help get the latter elected, studies suggest.
鈥淭here isn鈥檛 鈥 a consensus from the studies, research, even anecdotal evidence you hear about the significance or the impact of these endorsements in the political context,鈥 Aron Darmody, associate professor, marketing, at Carleton University鈥檚 Sprott School of Business, told me.
鈥淚t鈥檚 not really been shown conclusively (that celebrity endorsements) tend to translate in a very positive way to actually getting extra votes on the ballot,鈥 鈥 Darmody said.
In fact, as we witnessed south of the border, high-powered endorsements from some of the biggest celebrities in the world 鈥 Beyonc茅, Taylor Swift and Bruce Springsteen, support the Democratic Party鈥檚 campaign used as a strong bellwether for success 鈥 didn鈥檛 deliver a win for former vice president Kamala Harris.
One study, a l, which looked at the impact of celebrity engagement on civic participation, found that 鈥渨hile some polling shows that people claim they aren鈥檛 influenced by celebrity voices when it comes to politics, more rigorous evidence indicates that these voices are incredibly powerful.
鈥淔or example, non-profits report higher rates of online voter registration or poll worker sign-ups when a celebrity promotes these calls to action. This potential impact is why non-profits, candidates, and elected officials are increasingly seeking ways to engage celebrities,鈥 the report states.
Young鈥檚 support for Carney is multi-layered and goes beyond the ordinary, run-of-the-mill celebrity endorsement, Darmody argued.
I agree with that assessment.
For me, Young鈥檚 comments fall under the same sphere as the public statements from two other megawatt Canadian celebrities, Mike Myers and Wayne Gretzky, who like Young, live in the United States, but have been compelled to tout their Canadian 鈥渃red鈥 amid tariffs, economic challenges and threats to our sovereignty from the Americans.
Among his public statements, Myers, a comedian and actor, appeared on “Saturday Night Live” wearing a T-shirt that featured a Canadian flag and the slogan “Canada is not for Sale.”
He also shot a at an ice hockey rink, where the two banter about Canadian cultural touchstones like the show “Mr. Dressup.” Myers appears in a hockey jersey with the No. 51 on the back and the word 鈥渘ever鈥 at the top 鈥 a rebuke to the notion of Canada becoming the 51st聽U.S. state.
In the video Myers and Carney do the 鈥渆lbows up鈥 pose, a hockey reference about defensive stances on the ice and a term that鈥檚 been co-opted into a rallying cry against U.S. encroachment.
Meanwhile, Canadian hockey legend Gretzky, who hasn鈥檛 endorsed any Canadian politicians in this election, has taken enormous flak over the perception that he hasn鈥檛 stood up enough to the U.S. and his pal, U.S. president Donald Trump amid the tensions between the two neighbouring countries.
As controversy swirled around the Great One, he tried to quell some of the backlash by giving an interview to the 海角社区官网Sun, in which Gretzky said he has 鈥渘o interest in politics鈥 and is 鈥淐anadian through and through.鈥
The closest Gretzky came to a political statement in the interview was when he said: 鈥淐anadians are proud. They defend each other. And when they are getting taken advantage of, they speak out. We protect our domain,鈥 which as public editor I took as a subtle 鈥渂ack off鈥 to the American government.
As for celebrity endorsements, Darmody makes the compelling argument that while this support can鈥檛 necessarily guarantee votes, it can certainly help raise the profile of politicians like Carney, who are less well-known to the public and have a shorter track record in politics.
鈥淭ypically, politicians when they鈥檙e up for election, particularly if they鈥檙e the leader of a party, they鈥檝e been in politics for a long time 鈥 they鈥檝e sort of got a political brand, separate from their party,鈥欌 Darmody said.
Having famous people stand beside Carney, lending their support to him, helping him show his personality, is rather useful, Darmody said.
These celebrity endorsements are 鈥渟hortcuts鈥 to increasing his profile, given Carney came into this election without that level of 鈥減ersonal connection鈥 with voters, Darmody added.
Mike Myers is a good 鈥渃onduit鈥 Darmody said, a well-known Canadian.
鈥淓lbows up, is fantastic political sloganeering. It鈥檚 short, sharp, meets the moment and taps into the hockeyness of it all,鈥 the expert said.
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