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Footage of the 77-year-old Vermont senator rallying supporters
will be posted on Twitch, alongside its more regular output of
teenagers playing Fortnite, Overwatch and other combat games.
“We hope to reach people who may not otherwise be involved in
politics and speak with them about the issues that matter most
to them,” said Josh Miller-Lewis, the Sanders campaign's digital
communications director.
Sanders' Twitch channel had attracted more than 8,000 supporters
early on Wednesday, a day ahead of its official launch and
before it had posted any content.
There was no immediate comment from Amazon-owned Twitch, which
streamed both the Republican and Democratic National Conventions
before the 2016 national elections.
Sanders' team said the first streams would cover the build-up to
the second night of Democratic presidential debates and the
aftermath.
The veteran politician, who faces a crowded field, last week
took part in an ‘Ask Me Anything’ session on the subreddit r/SandersForPresident
and livestreamed a response to President Donald Trump’s campaign
kick-off rally.
One of his rivals for the Democratic nomination, Andrew Yang,
launched a Twitch channel in 2018.
In January 2019, U.S. Representative Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez,
another progressive Democrat, dropped in on a Twitch stream to
discuss transgender rights.
Twitch, which says it has 15 million daily users, is primarily a
gaming site but also has channels focused on sports, music and
politics.
(Reporting by Elizabeth Culliford; additional reporting by Rich
McKay; Editing by Andrew Heavens)
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