Lady Gaga isn't making a poker face when it comes to politics.
By using social media to inject herself into the middle of a heated national debate over gays in the military, the pop superstar is changing the way celebrities influence Washington.
 AP photo Lady Gaga plays old-fashioned politics at a rally in Maine. |
Sending messages of 140 characters or less on Twitter, Gaga started a highly publicized public dialogue with Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, D-Nev., and the Democratic senators from her home state of New York. Her tweets were simple: repeal the military's ban on gays who wish to openly serve.
"He appreciated her raising the profile of the issue," said Jim Manley, a spokesman for Reid, who said the message came as somewhat of a surprise.
With the advent of Facebook, Twitter and YouTube, powerful messages can be delivered in an instant, said Garry Hoppenstand, a pop culture expert at Michigan State University. Lady Gaga has been the most prominent _ if the not the first _ celebrity to use these avenues to advance a political agenda, he added.
Gaga, who took the music world by storm about two years ago, is known for hits such as "Just Dance" and "Bad Romance." She has a knack for going pantless and maintains her persona as Lady Gaga at all times.
Employing the same media manipulation to the campaign against the military's so-called "don't ask, don't tell" policy that made her famous, Gaga pushed legislators and citizens to rally for the ban's permanent dismissal. She used social media and direct action _ a campaign-style rally in Portland, Maine _ in a fruitless attempt to convince Maine's two moderate Republican senators to allow the repeal vote to proceed.
Although she failed to sway the GOP senators and a Republican-led filibuster Tuesday quashed repeal of the policy, Gaga's methods left an impression. The Mother Monster, as she's been dubbed, released a YouTube video days before the filibuster in which she tried to reach Sen. Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., and encouraged fans to reach out to legislators. It's received more than 1.7 million hits.
Actions like this that thrust her into a more prominent role in the political arena than stars such as Sean Penn and Brad Pitt, Hoppenstand said.
"She seems to be a level above them in terms of how she works the media," he said. "As she is successful as an entertainer in the media, she also is successful as communicator."
Beyond Twitter and YouTube, Gaga also redirected traffic from her website to the Servicemembers Legal Defense Network, which supports people who have been discharged from the military because of their sexual orientation. It also calls for the abolishment of don't ask, don't tell. The site had 500 percent increase in viewers during the past two weeks, said Trevor Thomas, the group's communication's director.
A typical two-week period brings in about 13,000 viewers. With Gaga's help, it was about 300,000.
"Celebrities have spoken out for lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender issues," he said. "The difference with Lady Gaga is she had done it at the right time, asked what she could do and how it could be strategic."
Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand, D-N.Y., who exchanged tweets and subsequently spoke with Gaga on the telephone, said she also was impressed with Gaga's ability to create a significant buzz around the issue.
"It's terrific because we need advocates in every aspect in our community," Gillibrand said. "She is the one who is mobilizing a whole new generation of advocates."
Gaga's approach provides a stark contrast to the social activism of most celebrities, which customarily includes testimony before congressional committees or speeches at the National Press Club on their pet issues. The same week Gaga took to Twitter, actor Kevin Costner spoke on Capitol Hill about technology that separates spilled oil from clean water.
The pop star will have to wait for final action on gays in the military. Congress will review don't ask, don't tell once it receives a report from the military this December about how lifting it could affect the armed forces, said Sen. John Cornyn, R-Texas. Aware of Gaga's push for a repeal of the policy, Cornyn said the overall wellbeing of the military is what's important, not the "impassioned pleas" of celebrities.
Gaga's outspoken nature and pervasive presence in the media won't damage her career, Hoppenstand predicted. And although she might be bluffin' with her muffin, there's no question where her political passions lie. Just look to Twitter and YouTube.
"She out-Madonnas Madonna even," Hoppenstand said. "That gives her a tremendous voice on political issues."
