 Fantastic. Look at that. That's lovely. Tipping your head that way. Look at that. Fantastic. Really cool shot. Technology has impacted Americans' relationship with government for 240 years. We've gone from stump speeches given on actual stumps to radio to television and now the internet. And things are moving faster than ever. When Barack Obama took office in 2008, he was proudly known as the first Blackberry president. But that Blackberry isn't exactly proof of being tech savvy anymore. His administration has had to rapidly embrace platforms like Twitter, Facebook, and YouTube. The public is more engaged with government in more ways than ever before. But it's Michelle Obama who's taken it even farther. With her initiatives aimed specifically at young people, she's pursued even newer tools like Vine, Instagram, Snapchat, and Periscope. The First Lady's office has stood at the forefront of the changes the White House has faced online, while still balancing her strategy with unique authenticity. Somehow, Michelle Obama is a politician who's remained cool. We had the chance to speak with Michelle and her communications director, Caroline Adler, about how they pulled that off. So in less than a decade, it's an enormous amount of change. How did you think about handling that change? Why did you decide to so aggressively embrace social media? You know, if you think about the campaign, this presidency, we were always striving to be kind of cutting edge. Nowadays, this generation, they're not watching nightly news, they're not reading the newspapers, they're not watching the Sunday morning shows. They're on their phones. So we had to start thinking of creative and fun ways to connect with those folks. Because what we understood is that this generation, they're looking for authenticity. They're looking for what feels real and natural. So I knew that my issues had to be real and natural to me if I was going to be in any way compelling to the audiences that we were trying to reach. So that's been refreshing. So people can get to know me directly. They can see that I'm kind of silly sometimes, that I care, they can feel the passion. They don't have to have that filtered through another source. And young people in particular like that. It's true. In so much of what Michelle does online, she seems authentic and natural. It could be her dunking on the Miami Heat with LeBron James or hanging out with a few Vine superstars or rapping with Jay Pharoah. In each of these, it feels like she's having fun. But behind the scenes, a lot of work goes into what she says and what platform she uses to say it. The First Lady has four initiatives that she and her team promote. Each of these requires a different approach to find the right audience on the right platform. So something as simple as turning up with a turnip takes a lot of planning. When you are planning to do something on Vine, when you're planning to do something on Instagram, how does that idea come about? How did Turnip for What happen? Walk me through that. The beauty is I'm surrounded by a lot of millennials. So I usually get ideas from my team. Well, and it's often about what is the strategic priority, what is the strategic goal that we want to achieve? So each of the First Lady's four initiatives, Let's Move, Joining Forces, Reach Higher and Let Girls Learn, each have a goal and they have a different audience. You wonder, well, what's the platform that will serve us best? So for Turnip for What, so that was actually a product of the First Lady's first Vine Q&A. Hey, it's Michelle Obama. I'm excited to answer your questions. This is Obama. What's your favorite fall veg? My favorite fall vegetable is a sweet potato. My name is Jordan. How do you get kids to work out when they don't want to? I remind kids that working out is just like playing. On average, how many calories do you burn every time you turn up? Turnip for What? We want to make healthy eating and active kids part of the conversation. And it was all because we started out wanting to have a conversation on platforms where our audience looked. So who had that idea? Was that your idea? Was it the President's idea? Will John call you? No, no. It was one of our teams. What helps with me and the President is that we're connected enough to pop culture. I know who Lil' John is. I know the song. My kids are singing it. So when somebody says, why don't we do Turnip for What, I get it immediately. And I was like, okay, that could be cute. So one thing that strikes me about all of this, which I think is fascinating, is that the tools that you use to create the media and then distribute the media are the same tools that the public is now using to both consume what you create, but then also to create their own media. They're intimately familiar with how to use Snapchat. They're intimately familiar with how to use Instagram. I think that's really changed the nature of the communication. I think it changed the nature of politics. Do you see that? Has it changed how you approach being first-line media? Definitely. What we learned is that we have to be nimble. You can't sort of be stuck in the way things were done or in the way we did things even in the first term, because the social media platforms are ever-changing, and you've got to be ready to move and shift with them. My whole goal, the question that I ask myself, that our team, we ask ourselves is, what's going to work? How are we going to move the needle? What's going to change the conversation? Because what we talked about even coming in was that we don't want to be an administration, a presidency that's just into meaningless slogans. We want to do things that are actually going to change people's lives, and the only way to do that is to constantly make those shifts so that the message is getting directly to the people that you're trying to reach. And if that means Vine, all right, let's bring some of the VI-Vers in here and let's do some fun stuff with them, if that's what young people are listening to. If we want to get more people into the White House and have them access the People's House, well, then let's use virtual videos to open up these tours so that millions of people who can never come and see these rooms have the opportunity to do it. That's the beauty of this administration, we have all of these wonderful tools to just open things up more and more. And it's been so much fun doing it. One thing I would add is, you know, it's a little known fact, the First Lady's office doesn't have any congressional authority or any independent funding. We got nothing. We got nothing. Except a great principal. And a good team. Other than that. But when we want to have, you know, when you want to have impact, you want to open the White House and you want to move the needle on all of the initiatives that have become hallmarks of this office, social media is a great opportunity for that. And I think that you would, I hope you would agree that the next, you know, people who are here, it expands the office, it expands the impact that you can have without those other resources. But even though there's so much good to be found online, there's also a lot of bad. These new platforms can be used for abuse. And the past few years have seen people, particularly women, people of color, and other underrepresented groups, suffer the kind of harassment that silences them. That's something The Verge takes very seriously. And it's why our parent company, Vox Media, has teamed up with Intel and others to launch Hack Harassment, a way to work with social platforms to safeguard users from online abuse. What do you think platforms like Instagram, Facebook, Twitter can do to stop this problem? You know, and as a mom, this is one of the things that I worry about, because we were talking about this the other day in the office. It's just, you know, these platforms, not only do you bypass the middleman, but with young people you can bypass the parent. You know, my kids' first connection to social media happened without me involved, because they can get their phones and they can tap into this stuff and they're using it, before you even know. When you're talking about really young kids, you know, they don't know what they're doing. As I said, it's like giving a 12-year-old the keys to the car and going, just see what happens. Get out there on the road, figure it out, and bad stuff can happen. So one of the things I hope that the social media platforms, all you guys, can get together and help teach these kids all the many positive ways that they can use these platforms, because there are so many. Make those positive uses trendier. They will do what's cool. It's just, you guys have to make the right thing cool. Well, you've been helping out a lot, doing cool stuff. Yeah, we'll keep doing it. So you've got one year left. What do you want to accomplish this year? And what kind of legacy do you want to leave, particularly with communicating with young people on the platforms? Well, we want to, you know, this platform is so unique, we will never have it again. The White House, this experience, you know, social media allows the country to grow with the White House, or the White House to grow with the country. You know, there are constant changes. Young people expect and want something different from their leadership. And social media gives us the tools to stay connected and to, again, be flexible and to reach people where they need to be reached so that they get the messages and they understand the policies that, you know, we are desperately trying to implement. You can't do it now without this kind of connection. So we're going to spend these 12 months on every single issue, making sure we're driving to the very end. You
 Fantastic. Look at that. That's lovely. Tipping your head that way. Look at that. Fantastic.
 Really cool shot.
 Technology has impacted Americans' relationship with government for 240 years.
 We've gone from stump speeches given on actual stumps to radio to television and now the internet.
 And things are moving faster than ever. When Barack Obama took office in 2008, he was proudly known as the first Blackberry president.
 But that Blackberry isn't exactly proof of being tech savvy anymore.
 His administration has had to rapidly embrace platforms like Twitter, Facebook, and YouTube.
 The public is more engaged with government in more ways than ever before.
 But it's Michelle Obama who's taken it even farther.
 With her initiatives aimed specifically at young people, she's pursued even newer tools like Vine, Instagram, Snapchat, and Periscope.
 The First Lady's office has stood at the forefront of the changes the White House has faced online, while still balancing her strategy with unique authenticity.
 Somehow, Michelle Obama is a politician who's remained cool.
 We had the chance to speak with Michelle and her communications director, Caroline Adler, about how they pulled that off.
 So in less than a decade, it's an enormous amount of change. How did you think about handling that change?
 Why did you decide to so aggressively embrace social media?
 You know, if you think about the campaign, this presidency, we were always striving to be kind of cutting edge.
 Nowadays, this generation, they're not watching nightly news, they're not reading the newspapers, they're not watching the Sunday morning shows.
 They're on their phones. So we had to start thinking of creative and fun ways to connect with those folks.
 Because what we understood is that this generation, they're looking for authenticity.
 They're looking for what feels real and natural.
 So I knew that my issues had to be real and natural to me if I was going to be in any way compelling to the audiences that we were trying to reach.
 So that's been refreshing. So people can get to know me directly.
 They can see that I'm kind of silly sometimes, that I care, they can feel the passion.
 They don't have to have that filtered through another source. And young people in particular like that.
 It's true. In so much of what Michelle does online, she seems authentic and natural.
 It could be her dunking on the Miami Heat with LeBron James or hanging out with a few Vine superstars or rapping with Jay Pharoah.
 In each of these, it feels like she's having fun.
 But behind the scenes, a lot of work goes into what she says and what platform she uses to say it.
 The First Lady has four initiatives that she and her team promote.
 Each of these requires a different approach to find the right audience on the right platform.
 So something as simple as turning up with a turnip takes a lot of planning.
 When you are planning to do something on Vine, when you're planning to do something on Instagram, how does that idea come about?
 How did Turnip for What happen? Walk me through that.
 The beauty is I'm surrounded by a lot of millennials. So I usually get ideas from my team.
 Well, and it's often about what is the strategic priority, what is the strategic goal that we want to achieve?
 So each of the First Lady's four initiatives, Let's Move, Joining Forces, Reach Higher and Let Girls Learn,
 each have a goal and they have a different audience.
 You wonder, well, what's the platform that will serve us best? So for Turnip for What,
 so that was actually a product of the First Lady's first Vine Q&A.
 Hey, it's Michelle Obama. I'm excited to answer your questions.
 This is Obama. What's your favorite fall veg?
 My favorite fall vegetable is a sweet potato.
 My name is Jordan. How do you get kids to work out when they don't want to?
 I remind kids that working out is just like playing.
 On average, how many calories do you burn every time you turn up?
 Turnip for What?
 We want to make healthy eating and active kids part of the conversation.
 And it was all because we started out wanting to have a conversation on platforms where our audience looked.
 So who had that idea? Was that your idea? Was it the President's idea? Will John call you?
 No, no. It was one of our teams.
 What helps with me and the President is that we're connected enough to pop culture.
 I know who Lil' John is. I know the song. My kids are singing it.
 So when somebody says, why don't we do Turnip for What, I get it immediately.
 And I was like, okay, that could be cute.
 So one thing that strikes me about all of this, which I think is fascinating,
 is that the tools that you use to create the media and then distribute the media
 are the same tools that the public is now using to both consume what you create,
 but then also to create their own media. They're intimately familiar with how to use Snapchat.
 They're intimately familiar with how to use Instagram.
 I think that's really changed the nature of the communication.
 I think it changed the nature of politics. Do you see that?
 Has it changed how you approach being first-line media?
 Definitely. What we learned is that we have to be nimble.
 You can't sort of be stuck in the way things were done or in the way we did things even in the first term,
 because the social media platforms are ever-changing, and you've got to be ready to move and shift with them.
 My whole goal, the question that I ask myself, that our team, we ask ourselves is, what's going to work?
 How are we going to move the needle? What's going to change the conversation?
 Because what we talked about even coming in was that we don't want to be an administration,
 a presidency that's just into meaningless slogans.
 We want to do things that are actually going to change people's lives,
 and the only way to do that is to constantly make those shifts so that the message is getting directly to the people that you're trying to reach.
 And if that means Vine, all right, let's bring some of the VI-Vers in here and let's do some fun stuff with them,
 if that's what young people are listening to.
 If we want to get more people into the White House and have them access the People's House,
 well, then let's use virtual videos to open up these tours so that millions of people who can never come
 and see these rooms have the opportunity to do it.
 That's the beauty of this administration, we have all of these wonderful tools to just open things up more and more.
 And it's been so much fun doing it.
 One thing I would add is, you know, it's a little known fact,
 the First Lady's office doesn't have any congressional authority or any independent funding.
 We got nothing.
 We got nothing.
 Except a great principal.
 And a good team.
 Other than that.
 But when we want to have, you know, when you want to have impact,
 you want to open the White House and you want to move the needle on all of the initiatives that have become hallmarks of this office,
 social media is a great opportunity for that.
 And I think that you would, I hope you would agree that the next, you know, people who are here,
 it expands the office, it expands the impact that you can have without those other resources.
 But even though there's so much good to be found online, there's also a lot of bad.
 These new platforms can be used for abuse.
 And the past few years have seen people, particularly women, people of color,
 and other underrepresented groups, suffer the kind of harassment that silences them.
 That's something The Verge takes very seriously.
 And it's why our parent company, Vox Media, has teamed up with Intel and others to launch Hack Harassment,
 a way to work with social platforms to safeguard users from online abuse.
 What do you think platforms like Instagram, Facebook, Twitter can do to stop this problem?
 You know, and as a mom, this is one of the things that I worry about,
 because we were talking about this the other day in the office.
 It's just, you know, these platforms, not only do you bypass the middleman,
 but with young people you can bypass the parent.
 You know, my kids' first connection to social media happened without me involved,
 because they can get their phones and they can tap into this stuff and they're using it, before you even know.
 When you're talking about really young kids, you know, they don't know what they're doing.
 As I said, it's like giving a 12-year-old the keys to the car and going, just see what happens.
 Get out there on the road, figure it out, and bad stuff can happen.
 So one of the things I hope that the social media platforms, all you guys, can get together
 and help teach these kids all the many positive ways that they can use these platforms,
 because there are so many. Make those positive uses trendier. They will do what's cool.
 It's just, you guys have to make the right thing cool.
 Well, you've been helping out a lot, doing cool stuff.
 Yeah, we'll keep doing it.
 So you've got one year left. What do you want to accomplish this year?
 And what kind of legacy do you want to leave, particularly with communicating with young people on the platforms?
 Well, we want to, you know, this platform is so unique, we will never have it again.
 The White House, this experience, you know, social media allows the country to grow with the White House,
 or the White House to grow with the country. You know, there are constant changes.
 Young people expect and want something different from their leadership.
 And social media gives us the tools to stay connected and to, again, be flexible
 and to reach people where they need to be reached so that they get the messages
 and they understand the policies that, you know, we are desperately trying to implement.
 You can't do it now without this kind of connection.
 So we're going to spend these 12 months on every single issue, making sure we're driving to the very end.
 You