How a Local Media Network Quietly Amplified Sean Di Somma’s Campaign
Campaign filings show payments to a consulting firm whose principal is linked to a local outlet that published favorable coverage during Sean Di Somma’s mayoral bid, raising questions about transparency in Belmar’s political messaging.
Local political influence doesn’t always arrive through ads or mailers. Increasingly, it moves through digital outlets that appear to be independent news sources while publishing content that aligns with campaign interests. Our review of publicly available records shows how that dynamic played out in one recent race: a media outlet linked to a campaign vendor published and amplified favorable content about a candidate during an active election period, without any public disclosure of that relationship.
A closer look at the campaign of Sean Di Somma shows how these dynamics ultimately surfaced on residents’ newsfeeds.