The Creative Caucus

Garret Brubaker
  • 5.0 (1)
  • Política

Political ads are weird. They’re emotional, strategic, overanalyzed, under-appreciated, and everywhere. The Creative Caucus is a podcast that goes behind the scenes of the political advertising world to talk with the people who actually make the work. Hosted by Garret Brubaker, founder of Studio Brubaker, the show is a candid, creative-first conversation about persuasion, storytelling, and the craft of political communication. Each episode features in-depth interviews with professional creatives working across the political spectrum, from presidential and national campaigns to statewide races, ballot initiatives, advocacy groups, and local elections. These are strategists, copywriters, filmmakers, designers, editors, and creative directors who live at the intersection of art, messaging, and power. Whether you’re a political creative, marketer, strategist, journalist, or simply someone curious about how modern political messaging actually gets made, The Creative Caucus offers a rare, inside look at a strange, influential, and endlessly fascinating corner of the creative world. Because political ads may be weird...but the people who make them are thoughtful, talented, and worth hearing from.

  1. 24 ago

    Colin Rogero: The Creative Director Who Puts Feeling Over Polling

    Garret Brubaker sits down with Colin Rogero, co-founder and creative director of Connexion, for a conversation about what happens when you treat political advertising as craft instead of a checklist. With more than two decades in the business, Colin has spent his career pushing political work to be less political and a lot more creative, from a documentary road trip across Mexico that lit the spark, to the FedExed portfolio that landed him at Strother Duffy Strother, to building a Latino-focused agency that swings elections with feeling instead of formulas. Colin breaks down the infamous truck ad from the 2017 Virginia governor's race that drew death threats and nearly put him out of business before post-campaign analysis proved it was one of the most effective spots of the cycle. He digs into the craft behind Bobby Pulido's launch for Congress, the surreal experience of directing Marc Anthony on the Harris campaign, and the on-set improvisation that made the La Chancla and Ruben Gallego "Mamá" ads land. Along the way he explains why he pushes back on polling, why people vote on vibes, and why homogenous political messaging keeps getting less effective. The conversation ranges from international races in Latin America, where good creative can swing an electorate fifteen points, to the difference between cultural competence and cultural fluency, to the near-impossible task of securing Pharrell's "Freedom" for a BlackPac spot. Colin closes on why he still endures the b******t of political work: because few things in life let you change how someone feels in an instant, and see the effect almost immediately. Key Takeaways ● The truck ad from Virginia's 2017 governor's race drew death threats and pressure from Democratic funders, but post-campaign analysis showed it was the most effective spot with both Latino voters and suburban white women. ● People make 85 to 95 percent of their political decisions on an emotional, visceral gut response, not the cerebral, data-heavy exercise a poll measures. As Colin puts it, "people vote on vibes." ● The best creative comes from teams in synergy and on-set magic, not a lone genius in the room. The truck chase came from Colin's own real experience being run down by pickup trucks as a teenager in South Florida. ● Cultural fluency beats cultural competence: knowing how to speak the language of the people literally and metaphorically, using Spanish, English, and Spanglish depending on the district. ● International races, especially in Latin America without entrenched two-party allegiances, can swing fifteen points on the strength of a single ad, making creative effectiveness easier to see. ● No matter the country or language, most people want the same things: to feel safe, to get ahead economically, and to leave a better future to their kids. ● Homogenous, poll-driven political messaging keeps getting less effective. Surprise, emotion, and calling the viewer by name are what make advertising break through. Resources ● Connexion: https://maketheconexion.com/ ● Latino Victory Fund: Truck: https://f.io/rJ_XSPoR ● Latino Victory Fund: La Chancla (Spanish): https://f.io/1X_UDYcx ● Bobby Pulido: Cien Por Ciento: https://app.frame.io/presentations/5721f27c-d314-48d5-aca9-1fe4c403d69c ● Harris for President: Marc Anthony: https://f.io/jJ-Cw_Cf ● Ruben Gallego: Mamá: https://f.io/Ra7KKjqa ● BlackPac: Freedom: https://app.frame.io/presentations/5721f27c-d314-48d5-aca9-1fe4c403d69c Connect ● Creative Caucus on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/thecreativecaucus ● Studio Brubaker: https://www.studiobrubaker.com ● Garret Brubaker: https://www.linkedin.com/in/garret-brubaker-9b481553/ ● Colin Rogero: https://www.linkedin.com/in/colinrogero/ ● Connexion: https://maketheconexion.com/ Hashtags #CreativeCaucusPodcast #PoliticalAdvertising #PoliticalCreatives #CampaignStrategy #PoliticalMarketing #CreativeStrategy #LatinoVoters #PoliticalCreative #CampaignCreative #CulturalFluency #Connexion #PoliticalAds

  2. 10 ago

    Tobias Frere-Jones: Creating Gotham and Other Political Typefaces

    Garret Brubaker sits down with Tobias Frere-Jones, founder and typeface designer at Frere-Jones Type, for a deep look at the craft behind some of the most recognizable political branding in modern American politics. Best known for creating Gotham, the typeface that became synonymous with Barack Obama's presidential campaigns, Tobias traces how a piece of plainspoken lettering off the Port Authority bus terminal became a versatile family that would go on to blanket rally signs, newspaper front pages, and, later, conventions on both sides of the aisle. The conversation moves through Tobias's political portfolio one project at a time: Conductor for Cory Booker, born from the anti counterfeit numbers on a Bulgarian lottery ticket; Mallory for Julian Castro, a typeface built on Tobias's own dual British and American heritage; Community Gothic for Stacey Abrams, drawn weight by weight from different historical sources; and, most recently, the Administration typeface for the New York City Mayor's Office, a "grownup" evolution of the campaign type used by Zohran Mamdani. Along the way, Tobias explains why the Obama team got more out of Gotham than John Edwards did, how a custom word mark gets tuned letter by letter, and why naming a typeface is often the hardest part of the job. Tobias also opens up about the personal side of the work, from the pride of seeing his letters on the keys to the city he grew up in, to the strange experience of watching his typefaces get used to spell out messages he fundamentally disagrees with. He closes with a clear thesis on why type matters in politics: consistency reads as credibility, and a campaign that keeps its visual voice steady under pressure signals something real about how a candidate might govern. Key Takeaways ● Gotham grew out of plainspoken lettering on the Port Authority bus terminal, and Tobias designed it to preserve that unvarnished, forthright personality rather than chase another generic geometric sans serif. ● The Obama campaign leaned into Gotham's personality so hard that no other typeface could be swapped in, while John Edwards used the same font in a way where almost anything would have worked. ● Conductor, used for Cory Booker's campaign, was inspired by the deliberately unique anti forgery numbers printed on a Bulgarian lottery ticket. ● Mallory, used by Julian Castro's campaign, was built to carry Tobias's own dual British and American heritage, with monumental Roman uppercase and a noisier, New York influenced lowercase. ● Community Gothic, used for Stacey Abrams, was drawn weight by weight from different historical sources, and its name was changed from Union Gothic after the campaign flagged how it read in Georgia. ● The New York City Mayor's Office Administration typeface retrofits campaign details onto Empirica to balance credibility with the joy of Mamdani's original campaign type. ● Type gives a campaign personality, and consistency reads as credibility: a brand that looks different every time can quietly signal an unreliable candidate. Connect ● Creative Caucus on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/thecreativecaucus ● Studio Brubaker: https://www.studiobrubaker.com ● Garret Brubaker: https://www.linkedin.com/in/garret-brubaker-9b481553/ ● Tobias Frere-Jones, Frere-Jones Type: https://frerejones.com ● Conductor in use, Cory Booker 2020: https://frerejones.com/in-use/cory-booker-2020 ● Mallory in use, Julian Castro: https://frerejones.com/in-use/julian-castro ● Community Gothic, Grit and Patchwork: https://frerejones.com/blog/grit-and-patchwork ● Designing Gotham: https://frerejones.com/blog/designing-gotham ● Frere-Jones Type custom work: https://frerejones.com/custom #CreativeCaucusPodcast #PoliticalAdvertising #PoliticalCreatives #CampaignStrategy #PoliticalMarketing #CreativeStrategy #Typography #TypefaceDesign #Gotham #PoliticalDesign #BrandStrategy #CampaignBranding

  3. 27 jul

    Eric Bravo: Directing and Editing for the White House, Harris, AOC, Zohran, and Mor.

    Garret Brubaker sits down with Eric Bravo, a director and editor who got his start in political video working on Beto O'Rourke's 2019 presidential campaign and has since worked with Joe Biden, the White House, AOC, Kamala Harris, and Zohran Mamdani. Eric brings a music-video sensibility and his Mexican-American cultural perspective to political storytelling, and in this conversation he traces the fast, unrelenting marathon that took him from shooting bands and Jarritos spots in El Paso to directing President Biden in his own library. The two editors get deep into craft. Eric breaks down the last-minute cufflink shot on the Biden book announcement, the frame-by-frame ball tracking behind the viral Zohran basketball spot, and how the Harris "Freedom" launch video came together in a sleepless three-day sprint after his wife suggested laying Beyonce's "Freedom" over the cut. He explains his guiding principle of shooting for the edit, why the "Mother" and "We Rise" ads gave him rare creative freedom, and how his run-and-gun AOC district doc leaned on car-ride conversations to shape the story. Eric also opens up about the surreal stretches of his White House work, from filming the Ted Lasso cast bowling to getting swept into the BTS fandom, and why an all-female mariachi group performing on the South Lawn remains one of his favorite projects. He closes with a case for authenticity over formula: not every political video has to be a hype video, and there is enormous untapped potential in Spanish-language ads and in work that gives a scene room to build. Key Takeaways ● Eric approaches political video like a music video, a mindset that landed him his first campaign job because Beto's team wanted someone without ingrained political instincts. ● "Shoot for the edit" is his guiding principle: knowing exactly what he needs on set saves time both in production and in post. ● The Harris "Freedom" launch felt flat until Eric pitched putting Beyonce's "Freedom" over the cut, and the partnerships team secured the song within an hour of seeing it. ● The Zohran basketball ad's whip pans required frame-by-frame ball tracking and speed ramps to sell each transition, with lens flares covering the clunkier cuts. ● Ads like "Mother" (narrated by Viola Davis) and "We Rise" (narrated by Ron Perlman) are cut and approved before the voiceover is ever recorded, so a star read can't get killed in the approval process. ● Not every political video has to be a hype video: Eric favors slower, scene-driven ads that give a moment room to build, and sees Spanish-language work as an underrepresented, high-potential space. Connect ● Creative Caucus on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/thecreativecaucus ● Studio Brubaker: https://www.studiobrubaker.com ● Garret Brubaker: https://www.linkedin.com/in/garret-brubaker-9b481553/ ● Eric Bravo Website: https://ericbravo.co/ ● Eric Bravo on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/ericbravo4/ ● Eric Bravo on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/ericbravo #CreativeCaucusPodcast #PoliticalAdvertising #PoliticalCreatives #CampaignStrategy #PoliticalMarketing #CreativeStrategy #EricBravo #PoliticalVideo #VideoEditing #FilmDirecting #KamalaHarris #ZohranMamdani #WhiteHouse #SpanishLanguageAds #CampaignCreative

  4. 13 jul

    Quinlin Kelly & Alyson Quigley: The Craft, Chaos, and Comedy Behind the Scenes of Political Ads

    Garret Brubaker sits down with Quinlin Kelly, Director of Video Production at Change Media Group, alongside creative lead Alyson Quigley, for a candid, funny tour through the messy reality of political production. From a childhood cameo in a Senator Durbin ad to a Snapchat that landed a spot on Hillary Clinton's 2016 campaign, Quinlin traces a path that runs straight through the last decade of Democratic politics, while Alyson brings the perspective of a dance-and-film creative who found her home telling real stories for real stakes. The conversation is a working clinic in doing more with less. Quinlin and Alyson break down the ads they are proudest of: the "Off the Deep End" spot that required a VFX artist to empty a pool that had to be shot full, the "Wrong Profession" shoot where the gaffer got oiled up to play a mechanic between lighting his own shots, and the "busting your ass" infomercial that only clicked once they made the voter, not the candidate, the hero. Along the way they talk casting non-speaking roles fast, directing 10-month-old babies in two takes, and working with an untrained dog named Charles Barkley. They also get honest about the hard stuff: the iron worker in Florida who, after a full 12-hour shoot for a Kamala Harris spot, announced he was an undecided voter, and the delicate work of communicating the gravity of an abortion ban through a young girl's bedroom without exploiting anyone's story. The throughline is a philosophy of stripped-down crews, natural lighting, and creative testing that lets a Midwest-based boutique shop take real swings and win. Key Takeaways ● Political ads compete with TikTok, Netflix, and everything else people watch, so grabbing attention means treating craft and entertainment as seriously as strategy. ● Comedy is one of the hardest things to pull off in political work: the candidate has to be a game team player, and the biggest obstacle is often convincing the client to take the risk. ● Small crews and natural lighting can beat big budgets. On the "Her Room" spot, the hero shot ended up with no lights at all because it simply looked better. ● Casting non-speaking real people means leading with the fact that it is Democratic political work up front, then confirming again on contact, to avoid a shoot going sideways. ● The best on-set moments, a baby looking to camera, a gaffer improvising a wordless gesture, cannot be directed. You build a comfortable set and stay open to brilliance. ● Centering the voter as the hero (rather than the legislator) transformed the "busting your ass" infomercial from a stalled idea into a favorite spot. ● Creative testing acts as a safety net: the consultant-favorite ad is often not what moves voters most, so data gives clients the confidence to take creative risks. Connect ● Creative Caucus on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/thecreativecaucus ● Studio Brubaker: https://www.studiobrubaker.com ● Garret Brubaker: https://www.linkedin.com/in/garret-brubaker-9b481553/ ● Quinlin Kelly, Director of Video Production, Change Media Group: https://www.linkedin.com/in/quinlinkelly/ ● Alyson Quigley, https://www.linkedin.com/in/alyson-quigley-4b25b64b/ ●Change Media Group: https://changemediagroup.com/ Hashtags #CreativeCaucusPodcast #PoliticalAdvertising #PoliticalCreatives #CampaignStrategy #PoliticalMarketing #CreativeStrategy #ChangeMediaGroup #PoliticalVideo #VideoProduction #CampaignCreative #Directing #NaturalLighting #CreativeTesting

  5. 29 jun

    Sara Pearl Kenigsberg: Storytelling Across Newsrooms, Campaigns, Documentaries, and so Much More

    Garret Brubaker sits down with Sara Pearl Kenigsberg, Director and Producer at Hardpin, for a career-spanning conversation about what it actually takes to make political video that breaks through. A director, producer, and multimedia creative whose work runs from short films to TV and digital ads to podcasts and social campaigns, Sara has collaborated with top media and advocacy organizations, corporate clients, political campaigns, and world leaders. In this episode she traces a path that starts in journalism and photojournalism and winds through some of the most influential digital newsrooms and presidential campaigns of the last decade. Sara takes us inside the early days of online video at NowThis and HuffPost, when producers were inventing the rules before Instagram and Facebook even supported video. From there she breaks down life on the inside of two presidential campaigns: the in-house, all-under-one-roof creative engine behind Bernie Sanders and the Not Me. Us. spot, and the locked-down, socially distanced reality of producing for Joe Biden during COVID, including the Michelle Obama closing argument she helped pull off in Martha's Vineyard. She is candid about the tools, the silos, and why keeping paid and organic work in the same shop changes everything. The conversation widens out to becoming a parent in a young person's industry, the ego check that comes with it, and her current work at Hardpin, telling docu-style, human-driven stories for nonprofits and Democratic clients. Sara also opens up about traveling with the Clintons, her first feature documentary on harm in the mental health care system, her advocacy through Rosie's Farm Sanctuary, and why the best political storytelling still comes down to real people, real stakes, and a little bit of humanity. Key Takeaways ● The video teams behind both the Bernie and Biden 2020 campaigns were stacked with former digital media producers from NowThis and BuzzFeed, who brought a social-first, make-it-go-viral instinct into political work. ● Keeping paid TV, digital ads, and organic social all in house, as the Bernie campaign did, breaks down silos, shares resources across teams, and stretches every shoot further. ● COVID production meant no rallies, no big events, and a lot of improvisation: driving instead of flying, build days, air-out days, N95s on set, and directors joining remotely. ● Becoming a parent reframed the work. Caring deeply about the mission while accepting that one more ad will not single-handedly change the world is a healthier, more sustainable mindset. ● Hardpin's edge is a documentary, human-driven style that draws out authentic emotion, even inside scripted ad work. ● The fastest turnoffs in political creative are gotcha division, overplayed attacks, blatant AI, and filming a finished spot off a computer screen to fake authenticity. Connect ● Creative Caucus on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/thecreativecaucus ● Studio Brubaker: https://www.studiobrubaker.com ● Sara Pearl Kenigsberg on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/sarakenigsberg/ ● Hardpin: https://www.hardpinmedia.com #CreativeCaucusPodcast #PoliticalAdvertising #PoliticalCreatives #CampaignStrategy #PoliticalMarketing #CreativeStrategy #PoliticalVideo #DocumentaryFilmmaking #CampaignCreative #DigitalVideo #Hardpin #PoliticalStorytelling

  6. 15 jun

    Todd Hahn: Porn Music, Spielberg, and the Scores Behind Political Ads

    Garret Brubaker sits down with composer Todd Hahn, the man behind the music of political ads on both sides of every presidential election since 1996. A self-described struggling artist who failed government in high school, Todd stumbled into campaign work through a Washington post-production facility, where a chance partnership with media consultant Mark Putnam convinced him that original scoring could do what needle-drop records never could: deliver the message, dig under the skin, and move a voter to act. He explains why his lack of political knowledge became a virtue, and why music's only real job is to attach itself to the story. The conversation runs from craft to history. Todd breaks down how he scores a 30-second spot, starting with rhythm on a fast negative ad, listening for the money line, and resisting the urge to clobber the viewer when less is more. He talks about the technology that built his niche, from external sampler racks to everything living "in the box," and how that same accessibility of streaming music eventually changed who picks the track. Along the way he reflects on the esprit de corps of the old edit-house era, when Republican and Democratic consultants shared a lunchroom and a friendly competition. Todd also shares the stories he is proudest of and the one he can't stop laughing about: the historic Obama half-hour buy that preempted the World Series, the night Steven Spielberg gave musical notes in the edit suite and Mark Putnam respectfully overruled him, and the time a porno-groove score for an opponent's hairstyling footage helped run a candidate out of the race the next day. His closing message to the next generation of political creatives is simple: keep the art in the craft, and never forget that music is an invisible player. Key Takeaways ● Todd Hahn has scored ads for both sides of every presidential election since 1996, and credits his deliberate independence, personally and professionally, to a belief in the fairness at the heart of democracy. ● His lack of political background was an asset, not a liability. With no agenda beyond doing good work, he could write music that simply served the message. ● Music's only job is to attach itself to something and deliver the message. A dry spot stays informational until the score makes it explode emotionally. ● His process often starts with rhythm, not melody, on fast or negative ads, then builds architecture around the dialogue's "money line" before adding texture, because less is usually more. ● Affordable virtual instruments built his niche by letting him turn around a finished score in under an hour, but easy access to streaming music later shifted song selection back to editors who now cut to music. ● The Obama half-hour ad was a career high-water mark, preempting the World Series across nearly every network, and featured Steven Spielberg offering notes that Mark Putnam politely declined. Timestamps 00:00 The porn-music ad that ran a candidate out of the race 02:55 A roundabout path from struggling composer to Washington, D.C. 08:42 Meeting Mark Putnam and replacing needle-drop with original scores 15:34 How political scoring has changed over four decades 21:56 Staying independent and working both sides of the aisle 28:50 The historic Obama buy and Spielberg's notes in the edit suite 35:45 Inside the process: rhythm, the money line, and 18 ads a day 46:55 Finding where music pokes through wall-to-wall narration 52:02 Why original music still matters, and the invisible players Connect ● Todd Hahn: https://www.toddmhahn.com/home ● Creative Caucus on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/thecreativecaucus ● Studio Brubaker: https://www.studiobrubaker.com Hashtags #CreativeCaucusPodcast #PoliticalAdvertising #PoliticalCreatives #CampaignStrategy #PoliticalMarketing #CreativeStrategy #PoliticalScoring #CampaignAds #MusicComposition #FilmScoring #PoliticalMedia #CampaignCreative #AdMusic #ProTools

  7. 1 jun

    Scott Starrett: Creating the AOC Logo and the Philosophy of Political Branding

    Garret Brubaker sits down with Scott Starrett, founder and director of Tandem, the communication design and brand strategy firm behind the original campaign identity for Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez. Scott traces his path from drawing kid and C-SPAN watcher in Kansas, to creative director at an Austin political comms firm, to bootstrapping a New York studio focused on climate justice, advocacy, and public interest work. Along the way he breaks down what it actually takes to build a visual language for a movement, not just a candidate. The conversation goes deep on the AOC poster: why yellow broke every convention of political design, how the speech bubble and inverted exclamation marks were chosen to feel authentic to Bronx and Queens, why the now famous progressive lean came from a space constraint, and how bilingual typography pushed the team into a tighter, sharper composition. Scott talks about the risk of running a Netflix style campaign poster in a sea of red, white, and blue lookalikes, the moment volunteers started fighting to hand them out, and the strange feeling of watching the design language get copied across the country. Beyond the AOC story, Scott shares the philosophy behind Tandem's work: design is planning, visual identity is the tip of the iceberg, and the real job is helping organizations stop competing with razor subscription brands and start meeting their actual audience where they are. He gets into schismogenesis, the fluency gap between cause work and business marketing, why distressed fonts usually lie, and why the Buffalo Bills logo is great even though none of it makes any sense. Key Takeaways ● The AOC identity worked because it broke political convention on purpose. Yellow, a speech bubble, inverted exclamation marks, and a forward leaning typeface treated a Bronx and Queens campaign like a Netflix launch instead of a yard sign blending into the median. ● Designing is planning. A logo is the tip of the iceberg, and without strategy, audience understanding, and narrative underpinning, a slick mark is just a nice facade on a building that is s****y on the inside. ● Every non-incumbent political campaign is a zero sum startup with a hard success or failure date, and the risk averse instinct to look like a politician usually costs progressive candidates the chance to actually stand out. ● Schismogenesis, the idea that cultures form in opposition to each other, explains a lot of why political branding is bad. Tactics get moralized just because the other side uses them, and good ideas get thrown out for tribal reasons. ● Access to the stakeholder is everything. Tandem spent real time with Alexandria before she won, which is why the brand fit her instead of dressing her up as a generic politician. ● A great mark is conditional and contextual. The Buffalo Bills name makes no logical sense, the Browns helmet is not even brown, and both work because they earned a story and stood the test of time. Guest ● Scott Starrett, Founder and Director, Tandem. Scott Starrett is the founder and director of Tandem, a communication design and brand strategy firm focused on advocacy and public interest work, predominantly with nonprofits. He studied illustration and graphic design and previously served as creative director at a political communications firm in Austin, Texas, with his studio known for creating the original campaign identity for AOC. Connect ● Creative Caucus on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/thecreativecaucus ● Studio Brubaker: https://www.studiobrubaker.com ● Tandem: https://tandem.nyc ● Tandem on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/tandem.nyc Hashtags #CreativeCaucusPodcast #PoliticalAdvertising #PoliticalCreatives #CampaignStrategy #PoliticalMarketing #CreativeStrategy #BrandStrategy #PoliticalDesign #AOC #Tandem #LogoDesign #VisualIdentity #AdvocacyDesign #NonprofitBranding #DesignStrategy

  8. 18 may

    Charlie Goldensohn: An Unexpected New Social Media Star

    Garret Brubaker sits down with Charlie Goldensohn, political strategist, commentator, and co-founder of Badlands Agency, for a candid conversation about how a former Dianne Feinstein staffer became one of the loudest voices in the left's organic media revival. Charlie walks Garret through the trajectory: Senate office at 21, chief of staff energy at ATTN: in LA, Jill Biden's digital director in Wilmington, Jose Andres advisor, senior advisor and executive producer on the Harris paid media team. Then, after watching the Harris campaign set six figures on fire making 30-second spots that died in testing, he picked up his phone and started ranting. The conversation digs into what is actually broken inside Democratic creative right now. Charlie breaks down why "we need a Joe Rogan of the left" misreads how Rogan was built, why his audience skews 60% women on purpose, and why authentic, direct-to-camera content from people like Amanda Zurawski outperforms premium scripted ads at a fraction of the cost. He gets specific about the consultant economics that push campaigns toward expensive cable buys, the difference between running on "affordability" and running on free buses, and why the @chez.chuck handle started as a misunderstanding of French. Garret and Charlie close on the bigger fight: how the left reclaims freedom and patriotism as its own, why Bernie's 2020 town hall video model still works, and what gives a 27-year-old in Florida hope when Zohran wins in New York. It is a tactical, opinionated, occasionally self-roasting look at where political creative goes next from someone making it and critiquing it at the same time. Key Takeaways ● Charlie's path from Feinstein staffer to viral creator ran through ATTN:, Jill Biden's digital team, Jose Andres, and the Harris campaign's paid media operation, where he watched six-figure ad budgets die in testing rooms. ● @chez.chuck launched on TikTok with privacy settings cranked because Charlie was embarrassed. A shirtless beach video aimed at "MAGA dudes" cracked the algorithm and proved 90% of the battle is getting over the cringe. ● His audience skews 60% women on purpose. When women share his videos with the men in their lives, he reaches the lapsed-Democrat, Theo-Vonn-curious dudes the left keeps losing. ● The "Joe Rogan of the left" pitch fundamentally misreads how Rogan was built. Politics is downstream from culture and Rogan spent over a decade earning trust before he had political power. The fix is investment in digital infrastructure, not a single replacement voice. ● Organic is the smartest, cheapest testing ground for paid. Amanda Zurawski had zero TikTok followers when Charlie cold-messaged her. The two-minute, no-B-roll vertical they cut hit 1.6 million views in a week and put her on the DNC stage. ● Specificity wins. Zohran did not run on "affordability," he ran on free buses and free childcare. Democrats keep losing because they are obsessed with being correct and forgettable instead of memorable. Guest ● Charlie Goldensohn, Political Strategist, Commentator, and Co-founder, Badlands Agency. Charlie is a political strategist, producer, and co-founder of Badlands Agency who has built a large political audience online as a social media commentator. He began his career as a Senate staffer for Senator Dianne Feinstein after growing up in a politically active family in San Francisco. Connect ● Creative Caucus on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/thecreativecaucus ● Studio Brubaker: https://www.studiobrubaker.com ● Charlie Goldensohn on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/chez.chuck/ ● Charlie Goldensohn on TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@chezchuck ● Badlands Agency: https://badlandsstories.com #CreativeCaucusPodcast #PoliticalAdvertising #PoliticalCreatives #CampaignStrategy #PoliticalMarketing #CreativeStrategy #OrganicMedia #SocialFirst #CampaignCreative #DigitalStrategy #PoliticalContent #CreatorEconomy #BadlandsAgency #DirectToCamera #AuthenticMessaging

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Political ads are weird. They’re emotional, strategic, overanalyzed, under-appreciated, and everywhere. The Creative Caucus is a podcast that goes behind the scenes of the political advertising world to talk with the people who actually make the work. Hosted by Garret Brubaker, founder of Studio Brubaker, the show is a candid, creative-first conversation about persuasion, storytelling, and the craft of political communication. Each episode features in-depth interviews with professional creatives working across the political spectrum, from presidential and national campaigns to statewide races, ballot initiatives, advocacy groups, and local elections. These are strategists, copywriters, filmmakers, designers, editors, and creative directors who live at the intersection of art, messaging, and power. Whether you’re a political creative, marketer, strategist, journalist, or simply someone curious about how modern political messaging actually gets made, The Creative Caucus offers a rare, inside look at a strange, influential, and endlessly fascinating corner of the creative world. Because political ads may be weird...but the people who make them are thoughtful, talented, and worth hearing from.

Información

  • Creador
    Garret Brubaker
  • Años de actividad
    2026
  • Episodios
    14
  • Clasificación
    Explícito
  • Copyright
    © Copyright 2026 Garret Brubaker
  • Mostrar sitio web
    The Creative Caucus

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