I was never booked for my politics and never offered any. I was booked because I could explain, in ninety seconds, how a message moved through a network. These are the segments, in order, and what each one taught me about attention.
A movement that existed online before it existed in a park
Occupy Wall Street had no leader and no press office and organized itself on Twitter and Tumblr. The first time I explained on air that a movement could be real before it was physical.
Occupy Wall Street and social media
How a protest with no leader organized itself on Twitter and Tumblr. The first time I explained on air that a movement could exist entirely online before it existed in a park.
There is no private mode
The Anthony Weiner scandal, with Greg Kelly. The advice I gave viewers is the advice I give executives about AI tools now: assume everything you type is public.
The Anthony Weiner scandal, with Greg Kelly
On the congressman whose career ended with a tweet. The lesson I gave then is the one I give executives now: there is no private mode.
The 2012 conventions and the campaign that turned out the vote
The first conventions where the real-time reaction on Twitter was part of the story, with political analyst Basil Smikle, and the post-election breakdown of how the Obama campaign used social media through election night. I told viewers which of those tactics a business could borrow: segmentation, testing, and follow-up that does not stop.
The Republican National Convention and social media
The first convention where the real-time reaction on Twitter was part of the story.
Social media at the conventions, with Basil Smikle
With political analyst Basil Smikle on how both parties used social media at the 2012 conventions.
How social media decided the 2012 presidential election
The Obama campaign used social media to turn out the vote through election night. I broke down what both campaigns did and which tactics a business could borrow.
Twitter and politics (March 13, 2013)
On the growing impact of Twitter on political messaging and the news cycle.
2016: the first election where the feed beat the newspaper
Three weeks before the 2016 election, on how both campaigns used social media. And, from 2025, a segment on negotiation tactics in a policy standoff where I kept to the mechanics of the deal.
Social media and politics in the 2016 election
Three weeks before the 2016 election, on how both campaigns were using social media and why it was the first election where the feed mattered more than the newspaper.
Trump uses the Art of the Deal strategy for border control
A segment on negotiation tactics in politics: the anchor-high, concede-late pattern from the book, applied to a border policy standoff. I stuck to the mechanics of the negotiation rather than the politics.
Frequently asked questions
- Does Chris Dessi comment on politics?
No. He is booked to explain how messages move through social networks and, now, how AI shapes what people see. He explicitly stays out of partisan positions on air.
- What did the 2012 Obama campaign do with social media?
It used segmentation, testing and relentless follow-up to turn out voters through election night. Dessi's Good Day New York breakdown focused on which of those tactics a business could apply to its own customers.
- What did Occupy Wall Street show about social media?
That a movement could organize itself online, with no leader or press office, before it existed physically. Dessi explained this on Good Day New York in 2011.
- What is the lesson from the Anthony Weiner scandal?
That there is no private mode. Dessi gave that advice on Fox 5 in 2011 and gives the same advice today about AI chat tools and corporate messaging.
- Where can I see the full archive of Chris Dessi's TV appearances?
At christopherdessi.com/blog/chris-dessi-tv-appearances-archive/, organized by network, 2011 to 2026.
Booking a commentator who explains rather than argues?
Chris has made more than 130 on-air appearances since 2011 and is available for in-studio segments in New York.