High At 9 News Real talk on politics, culture, and the chaos.

High At 9 News

Real talk on politics, culture, and the chaos.

Latest Articles

One Video, One County, One Election: The Wild Science of Viral Moments Actually Winning Races
Politics

One Video, One County, One Election: The Wild Science of Viral Moments Actually Winning Races

We keep hearing that social media 'changes elections,' but what does that actually look like on the ground in a purple county where 800 votes decide everything? Turns out, a single clip hitting at the right moment can do more than any campaign mailer ever dreamed. Here's how the math actually works.

You Showed Up to Vote and Had No Idea What Half the Ballot Said — You're Not Alone
Culture

You Showed Up to Vote and Had No Idea What Half the Ballot Said — You're Not Alone

Millions of young voters are showing up on Election Day fired up about the top of the ticket and then completely blanking on everything below it. Ballot initiatives, local judges, obscure measures written in legal jargon — it's a literacy crisis hiding in plain sight, and the algorithm is making it worse.

Third Party or Bust: Young Organizers Are Done Trying to Fix the Democrats and Republicans
Culture

Third Party or Bust: Young Organizers Are Done Trying to Fix the Democrats and Republicans

A growing number of young Americans aren't trying to reform the Democratic or Republican parties anymore — they're building something new from scratch. Whether that's political innovation or a fast track to irrelevance is the question everyone's arguing about, and the organizers leading these micro-movements have some very strong opinions about which one it is.

Nobody's Watching the Debate: TikTok Clips Are Running the Election Now
Politics

Nobody's Watching the Debate: TikTok Clips Are Running the Election Now

The 90-minute debate format is basically political theater at this point — and younger voters have completely stopped buying tickets. A 15-second clip of a candidate fumbling a question now does more damage than an entire debate performance, and campaigns are starting to build their whole strategy around that reality.

When the Cosign Kills the Campaign: Celebrity Endorsements Are Broken
Culture

When the Cosign Kills the Campaign: Celebrity Endorsements Are Broken

A celebrity endorsement used to be political gold — a shortcut to credibility, headlines, and donor checks. Now it's a coin flip that can torpedo a campaign just as fast as it can boost one. We looked at why the whole celebrity-endorses-candidate machine has started misfiring, and what Gen-Z voters actually respond to instead.

City Council Is the New Congress: How Your Block's Politics Got Loud
Politics

City Council Is the New Congress: How Your Block's Politics Got Loud

Local elections used to be the boring fine print of democracy — the stuff your parents forgot to vote in. Now they're ground zero for every national culture war, housing crisis, and TikTok organizing campaign you can think of. Here's why your city council race in 2025 might be the most chaotic, high-stakes thing on your ballot.

Your Feed Lied to You: The Gap Between Political Viral Moments and How People Actually Vote
Culture

Your Feed Lied to You: The Gap Between Political Viral Moments and How People Actually Vote

Political TikTok can make it feel like the whole country is fired up about the same thing — until you check the actual election results. We looked at some of the biggest disconnects between what blew up online and what happened at the ballot box, and talked to Gen-Z voters about the moment they realized their algorithm wasn't a democracy.

Politics

Done With Both Parties: The Young Candidates Rewriting the Political Playbook From Scratch

A new wave of Gen-Z and millennial politicians isn't just frustrated with the two-party system — they're actively running against it. These outsider candidates are building coalitions that don't fit neatly into red or blue, and the party machines keep sleeping on them until election night.

5 Politicians Who Built Real Movements Without a Trust Fund or a PR Team
Culture

5 Politicians Who Built Real Movements Without a Trust Fund or a PR Team

Not every politician who connects with young voters is doing it with a seven-figure ad buy and a team of consultants. Some of them are actually just... doing the work. Here's what separates the ones who built real movements from the ones just cosplaying relatability online.

Why Republican Primaries Have Become a Race to the Bottom (And Why It Keeps Working)
Politics

Why Republican Primaries Have Become a Race to the Bottom (And Why It Keeps Working)

GOP primary candidates keep one-upping each other with wilder claims, stranger conspiracy theories, and increasingly unhinged talking points. But here's the thing — it's not accidental. There's a very real incentive structure rewarding the chaos, and it's reshaping what it means to run as a Republican.

These Politicians Post Like Real Humans and Honestly? It's Kind of Working
Culture

These Politicians Post Like Real Humans and Honestly? It's Kind of Working

Most politicians on social media are a crime against authenticity — stiff, over-produced, and painfully try-hard. But a handful have somehow cracked the code, posting content that feels like it comes from an actual person rather than a committee of consultants. We're breaking down who's doing it right, who's crashing out trying, and what it says about the weird new relationship between voters and the people who want their support.

Forget CNN — Gen-Z Is Getting Their Ballot Decisions From a 60-Second Video
Politics

Forget CNN — Gen-Z Is Getting Their Ballot Decisions From a 60-Second Video

Young voters aren't tuning into cable news panels to figure out who deserves their vote — they're scrolling, sharing, and making up their minds one viral clip at a time. We broke down exactly how Gen-Z consumes political content and what it actually means for democracy in the algorithm era. The answer is messier, and more interesting, than either party wants to admit.