Mark Cuban blasts candidates for being out of touch
Mark Cuban may not be running for president, but the billionaire entrepreneur has a few ideas about the future of America's political and economic systems.
The Dallas Maverick's owner posted to his blog on Monday, detailing the impact of social media on political campaigns, how best to reach the millennial generation and the biggest issue he sees with this year's candidates.
Gone are the days of traditional political endorsements, he says, "It's a new political world."
The majority of voters aren't looking to the evening news or a newspaper for information about political candidates, the entrepreneur said. Instead, they are turning to social media — Facebook (FB) feeds, Snapchat videos and Twitter (TWTR) feuds — to learn about the presidential hopefuls.
"Along these same lines, while we have seen some Youtubers during debates, we haven't really seen any endorsements of candidates from big time social media influencers," Cuban wrote. "[In my humble opinion], any candidate that wants to win the youth vote should be more interested in getting an endorsement from Nash Grier types than traditional political influencers."
Millennial entrepreneurs don't just want to make a profit, Cuban noted, they also want to share their success with others.
The Tom's shoes model of capitalist philanthropy — where a pair of shoes is donated for every pair bought — is highly valued by this generation, he said.
"Not only are 20-something entrepreneurs starting companies with a social component, 20-something consumers are EXPECTING a social component from companies they do business with," Cuban wrote.
That sort of "socialist capitalism" is a reason that millennials are flocking to Democratic candidate Bernie Sanders , he contended.
The "Shark Tank" star said both Democratic and Republican hopefuls lack leadership, explaining that candidates have spent most of their debate time trying to prove that they adhere to party principles and standards.
"A leader would come up with new ideas and new solutions for issues that are outside what everyone is talking about and make people realize just how important they are to the country," Cuban wrote.
He also noted that the candidates appear to be lacking in technological knowledge, which could be a big problem in the future.
"Wars won't be fought with bombs and bullets as much as bytes and advanced technologies," Cuban wrote. "Do our candidates realize that when it comes to hacking, there are only two kinds of companies and government agencies: those who have been hacked and those who don't know they have been hacked?"
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