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Managing a continuing concern about artificial intelligence, looking for solutions to a dim forecast about affordability.

And if you're curious about how Gen Z voters view their choices in the midterm election, we'll pose those questions on a Student Perspectives panel of The Press Room, starting now.

Hello and welcome to The Press Room: A Student Perspectives panel.

I'm Tony Perkins with four University of Arizona Journalism students, Arilynn Hyatt, Rachel Kietzman, McKenna Manzo and Madeleine Slawny.

Thanks for being with us on this special edition of The Press Room.

Now, some of the big issues affecting young voters are the issues that are affecting everyone else, you know, that's more urgent with someone just starting out in their post-education life.

So let's start with the subject of affordability.

Arilynn, in your reporting, leading into this election, you found that people being able to deal with basic needs is more difficult.

Yeah.

Everyone that I pretty much spoke to talked about how it's so hard to afford gas or groceries and how those prices really vary.

I also had a couple of people talk about utility costs.

Someone said that she had a savings account that she was planning to use to buy a house and that is now being used to manage rising utility prices.

And you heard that the federal programs that had existed to help people who are facing financial pressure and difficulties right off the start, those aren't enough anymore, not like they used to be.

And that's going to make a difference in who they're going to vote for in this election.

Absolutely.

I spoke to a young couple who are also in college and have a young baby and they talked a lot about how it's just harder to get on those federal programs because they're not, they're barely making the cutoffs and how they really want to see someone who really cares for the community and really addresses those problems.

Switching to the subject of artificial intelligence and technology that's going to be part of a young voter's future, you know, first question is how they feel about the technology in general and how that feeling may have changed over the past few years.

Now, Madeleine, you're finding that students may have felt one way about AI before, but they feel a bit differently now.

What is the contrast?

Yeah, definitely with the growing popularity of AI, there has been growing concerns about safety and privacy, particularly with some recent issues about data leaks being associated with these AI agents.

But also I think this is also an issue about affordability.

One of the biggest things that I, you know, one of the biggest problems was that AI was impacting the job market for many people.

And thus there was a lot of concerns about how people, you know, are going to be paying for groceries if some of these entry level positions are being taken up by AI and thus, you know, leaving people without jobs.

How's that making a difference in how people are voting?

You know, it really depends on the person.

But people are taking a look at how these candidates are approaching these issues and looking at how the candidate are approaching the job market and whether or not those candidates are making the job market a main focus.

That's definitely impacting what people are looking at when casting those ballots.

Alright.

Politics is an issue th maybe a lot of young people may not have paid a lot of attention attention to before, but they're paying attention to it now.

And how politics in general has changed for younger voters over the past couple of years, they saw President Trump elected for the second time.

They saw the impact of cutbacks that the federal government is willing to have--programs the federal government is willing to provide.

And they saw a new war in the Middle East.

Now, Rachel, you found that young people, maybe as a result, are looking for political alternatives out there.

Who else are they looking at and what kind of policies do they want to see?

Young people, they really want someone in office that is going to listen to them and understand issues that are important to them.

Because obviously issues that are important to say a 20 year old are different than a 60 year old.

And I think a lot of younger voters right now just don't feel like they're being heard and understood, which is leading them to disengage from politics.

And so they really want someone that's going to listen and understand what our generation is facing because it's things that no other generation in the past has faced.

We'll get some more questions about that later on.

But, you know, you've also heard about some support for alternatives stemming from enthusiasm for the mayor of New York City, Zohran Mamdani, and Democratic Socialism.

Arilynn, let me ask you this question.

How is that philosophy finding favor among Gen Z voters?

Yeah, I think it offers something new, something fresh.

Everyone that I talked to about that used him as an example of a type of candidate they would want to see in Tucson or wherever they plan to live after graduation because he was able to really tackle these big issues like affordability or child care.

That was a big issue that I didn't include in my story about the young couple is, you know, when that time comes, they are worried about child care.

And, you know, because Zohran Mamdani was able to implement these policies early on, that is something that they would like to see in their own backyard.

And talking about political alternatives, McKenna, I want to bring attention to the story that you Your reporting experience leading into this election included a conversation with a student who was formerly with the conservative Turning Point USA organization he registered as a Democrat last year.

What changed his mind?

Yeah, I think for Luke and for a lot of other young people, they're really looking for trust and stability within their elected officials.

And I think the bottom line of this entire conversation really is whether or not young people see their politicians working for them, whether they see the system working for them.

And I think that's what Luke was really getting at and why he ended up making that transition over to now being a Democrat.

Now, here's some general questions and I'll ask each of you to chime in on them.

Many elections are called change elections, you know, trying to make a difference.

The status quo does not remain in power.

And especially for young voters, this is pretty important.

Are young people looking at the Trump administration policies and hoping for change?

I think they are.

I think a lot of people are upset with some of the things that have been implemented, such as funding cuts for like the financial aid assistance, grocery assistance.

They're with the cost of living right now.

It's worrisome to a lot of college students and it all ties together with A.I.

taking these entry level jobs.

They are worried about not being able to get a job, not being able to afford rent, groceries, utilities.

And so they're looking at some of these programs being cut and it's making them very nervous.

And younger people, they want a candidate that will stand up for them and help them during these difficult times.

I'm sure that you all have all been tuned in to things that are happening not just in Arizona, but in the country and around the world.

There have been a lot of student run protests and demonstrations in other countries, particularly in France, in Italy and in Serbia during the past week or so.

Your sample might be limited.

But here's the question.

Are younger people, younger voters engaged in this election season or are they as apathetic as usual?

Certainly they've seen what's happening in other countries.

What about here?

I think that young voters are more interested in this election because we have a very unique perspective to where we can see international conflict play out in real time.

We see what's happening around the world just by opening our phones in the morning.

And I really think that's a motivating factor with young people thinking, hey, they do it over there, maybe we'll do it here.

And I've definitely seen that, especially on our own campus.

There's constantly students out there and protesting or just having those hard conversations about our future because it's on top of our mind right now.

Getting your news off of the phone instead of off the TV or off the radio, getting news when you want it and where you want it.

Madeleine, how are young people consuming the news during this election?

Is the fact that they can get their commentators, their favorite voices on Twitter or on YouTube making a difference?

Oh, for sure.

Young people have really been turning to social media for getting their news.

Even within our own campus, a lot of the journalism school programs have been switching to implementing social media more because that's definitely impacting how people are getting the news.

There was a Pew Research Center study showing that about 38 percent of young adults under 30 are getting their news from social media influencers.

Now, you're all starting your careers as journalists.

What challenges do you expect to confront as you get your lives started in the next level?

Arilynn, let's ask you first.

I mean, I feel like as I'm just starting out, I feel like a lot of the challenges that I'll face are similar challenges that other journalists face now, just in terms of trying to connect with audiences and getting people to really pay attention to the news right now with, I mean, our whole conversation about social media, it's making it harder for us to really tell people what to look for, what to pay attention to in the news while combating all of these other like social media influencers that try to also share the news as well.

It's making it hard.

So I think that's definitely a challenge.

Madeleine, what about you?

Special skills and talents that you have to have to be able to make a big difference or at least get your foot in the door in this business?

You know, I think definitely being a good people person and being able to just ease people into a conversation, particularl right now, I think there's a lot of distrust of the media.

And when I approach people for interviews, I notice that a lot of people could sometimes be fearful, but just being able to talk with them and explain that I'm here to get their perspective.

I've found a lot of success in that.

McKenna, do you have to have a special plan, a specific aim in mind?

Yeah, I think that you just have to know how to market yourself nowadays.

You have to have that multimedia experience.

You have to be willing to go out of the box a little bit.

You know, I think that's what people are looking for nowadays.

And kind of like going off what Arilynn said, I think that young people are starting to encounter news incidentally, like just opening their phones and getting a 60 second rundown of the latest political controversy.

And I think that's really cool because that's where journalists can step in.

We have that background.

We have that knowledge of how to talk about policies and break them down and still like make sure we're doing our journalistic responsibility of connecting to the bigger picture.

But that doesn't mean that we can't enter those conversations and can't enter those content spaces.

Alright.

Let's focus again on the election in Arizona and election contests here.

The state already has Democrats in the U.S.

Senate, the governor's office, secretary of state, state attorney general.

Now the question is, does Gen Z favor this?

They favor the Democratic Party in this election in response to especially to the policies resulting from the Trump administration.

Yeah, definitely more younger voters are leaning Democrat in this election.

That's what the polls are showing us right now.

However, when we look at early polling, it's not always going to give us a holistic picture or guarantee the outcome of an election.

So while it might be showing that Gen Z's are leaning Democratic, that might not account for the Republican Gen Z's that might not participate in early polling or getting numbers for these.

So while it's leaning Democrat, I think it really could go either way still.

We also hear some polling that Gen Z is a little bit more conservative than previous generations.

You find everything from the rate of alcohol being consumed, for example, and other aspects of everday lif Does that translate over to politics?

You know, I think it's hard to say.

I think it depends on the person and the young person themselves.

I would say most of all, the common characteristics I see among young voters, or at least the ones that I talk to, is just that desire for authenticity.

I don't know necessarily if it's like just the conservatives or just the Democrat young voters.

I think generally overall, young people want authenticity.

They want somebody that can talk to them in a plain way that can answer those hard questions and show that they care about everyday lives.

So sure, it could.

But I think the bigger question is whether or not they see the system working for them, like I said before.

Arilynn, what about you?

Yeah, I mean, much of what Rachel and McKenna have been saying, I think at the end of the day, younger voters are really tired of just the inauthenticity that's been going around.

They really want a candidate that says they're going to do something and actually does it, whether that is Democrat, whether that's Republican.

It's really up to, I think, the voter themselves.

But I think we're at a time now where younger voters are just tired of it.

We've seen and dealt with enough doom and gloom, for lack of a better term, that they really just want a candidate that will actually be authentic and connect with the actual voters.

Alright.

I'm going to get this question out for each of you.

Madeleine, I'll start with you.

For a young person who's voting in this election over the past, I would say six years.

Well, you've had Donald Trump for four years, Joe Biden for four years, and Trump for another two years, both leaders who are in their 70s and 80- years-old.

How much does that bring into the feelings of politics and leadership for young people these days?

Yeah, it was talking, particular with students, I've noticed that it's hard for students to really connect with these candidates.

And I do think inauthenticity is going to be the word of the day here.

It's these candidates that aren't relatable to young voters don't understand the problems that are impacting these young voters.

And, you know, thus again, I do think young voters are looking to candidates like Zohran Mamdani, who you know, are better at engaging with our age group.

Okay.

Is there just a gulf betwe you know, what the, you know, the expectations are for young people versus the realities that the older generation is bringing?

I definitely think so.

With AI and social media, the landscape has changed so much just over the past couple of years, even since Trump even first took office.

Things are not the same for our generation as they were for thes politicians when they were like our age.

And so we really are looking for someone that can understand and see our issues.

And you're right, inauthenticity is the word of the day.

We want people who understand us.

Authenticity, does that mean that younger people don't, they're tired of having non-serious people in office like reality show hosts or people who have little or few or no experience in government?

Yeah, I think that's a great point.

I think we see so much political polarization and that is a huge turnoff.

I think from what I've talked to the people that I've talked to, they feel that because of all the polarization that it's going on, it leaves little room for any sort of nuance or any sort of compromise.

So immediately, ears are closed, they don't want to hear anymore.

And so I think a candidate that can step outside of the polarization, step outside of the debate and just say what they actually are going to do, like you said, Arilynn, is so incredibly important for young voters.

Okay, let's move the discussion over to identity politics.

And this is a phrase that has been used from time to time, especially in the last four to eight years.

And different groups have been proven not to be, as we say, a monolith.

They're not going to vote the same way.

They're not going to be thinking of the issues the same way.

Let's talk about Gen Z and being or not being a monolith.

What is the best way?

Let me ask you, Rachel, first, what is the best way for politicians to reach people your age?

I think social media is the best way to reach our age right now.

We see the politicians that do have, say, a TikTok account, an Instagram account, and they are creating content specifically for the younger generation.

That content is being very well received.

People our age are consuming their news through social media most of the time.

And I've heard people they go and they look up things afterwards.

So it's not strictly social media.

That's not the only platform, but that's sort of the launching pad for a lot of people.

So I think the candidates that promote themselves on those social media platforms are doing very well with younger voters.

Madeleine, are you surprised if you see an older politician who has taken that step to try to reach young people through social media and do they always hit the target?

Yeah, there's definitely some.

And I've seen some campaigns where, you know, it'll be an older candidate.

But oftentimes, these social media accounts are often ran by, you know, young interns like ourselves.

And sometimes they connect well, but sometimes, you know, they scream, really, "how do you do fellow kids?"

You haven't seen anyone trying to write a skateboard or anything like that.

(McKenna) I'd think it's AI.

Continue with that subject.

Are the issues that young people have generally the same as millennials or Gen X?

You know, you're shaking your head or nodding your head.

(McKenna) Yeah.

Go ahead.

I was going to say, I just think that, like, no, I think that we are growing up in a very different economic environment from past and previous generations.

And I think with that comes a lot of economic economic uncertainty.

We don't know if we will get a job.

We don't know if the job will be there to even apply to.

So to your question, no.

Yeah, absolutely, no.

If you look at Gen Z specificall we grew up in the age of social media.

YouTube launched in the early 2000s.

So did Facebook.

And so we've grown up with social media our whole lives.

We also experienced the 2008 recession and on top of the COVID-19 pandemic, cyberbullying, all of these different component really have shaped our minds on how are we going to be successful going into the workforce?

Are we even going to get a job?

You know, thoughts of another recession happening is really depressing everyone.

And so the things that we have to deal with and think about are different than other generations.

And I don't think that's really connecting.

I don't think politicians are really connecting with that with young voters.

Madeleine, a lot of times college students are asked when they graduate if they have a five-year plan or maybe a seven-year plan.

How difficult is it to create a five-year plan and seven-year plan in today's economy?

These days, it's so difficult.

I mean, it's always been difficult.

You know, that's always been the one problem people have when graduating is the question of what now.

But, you know, again, going back to A.I., that was one of the biggest problems that I saw of, you know, recent graduates.

I talked to a recent grad and he was saying that he had a lot of friends who, you know, graduated and either got a job and got laid off because of A.I.

Or again, simply those positions aren't available anymore.

So it is really hard to have that certainty in your future after you graduate.

Now, as a result, do younger people want restrictions on A.I.?

They want to have some sort of limits or guardrails as to what it can do and be asked to do?

Yeah, I do think particularly just a slowing on A.I.

and like let's take a minute, let's evaluate, you know, where the A.I.

train is going and just taking a moment to reflect and, you know, getting politicians getting getting their eyes on these issues.

Because again, a lot of voters just find that politicians aren't paying attention.

And so, you know, directing that attention and going, hey, let's look at this.

Let's pump the brakes a little bit and then we can figure out how A.I.

can go from here.

OK, back to the Arizona elections.

You know, there's the governor's race is going to be decided.

There's six congressional districts between Juan Ciscomani, the incumbent, and JoAnna Mendoza, the Democrat.

What are the contests that you're looking forward to seeing resolved on Tuesday night?

And what do you think will be the most interesting one?

Rachel, we'll start with you.

I think CD6 is one that people are definitely watching.

This one not only has the opportunity, depending on the outcome, to depend how federal funding is spent, who has access to it locally here in southern Arizona, but it also could have the possibili to flip the House of Representatives.

And I think that could be big.

And a lot of people are really watching that to see how Tucson is voting.

All right.

Arilynn, let us ask you next.

I mean, I'd have to agree with Rachel CD6, but I also I'm also very curious about Proposition 421 with TEP and the franchise agreement, just because, you know, thinking about Tucson youth, it is kind of divided.

There is a group of people that are opposed to the franchise agreement, but there are some that are for it simply for the sustainability component within that agreement.

TEP plans to, you know, invest two million dollars every year for the span of like 25 years in sustainability projects.

And there is a chunk of young voters that really want to see that kind of amped up while there is an opposing side that does not that wants TEP to be more of like a publicly owned utility.

So I'd be very curious to see how that kind of shapes Tucson on Tuesday.

McKenna, what about you?

Yeah, I was really looking at Proposition 430, which is focusing on infrastructure developments and also workforce readiness developments for community college.

Super important in this conversation.

Not everybody is a student that can afford a four year university.

Sometimes they'll end up at a two year.

And it's important this conversa especially as young people are trying to build their future.

Of course, there's going to be that piece for voters on whether or not they think the property tax is worth it to pay.

That's an interesting conversati in itself.

Does education matter to people?

Does education for young people matter to people?

Madeleine, what about you?

Yeah, obviously, CD 6 is going to be an important race to watch.

But let's not forget about some of the down ballot races, particularly I was really interested in the Arizona Corporation Commission, the two seats that have opened up, especially with TEP and the rate increase.

That is being decided by the ACC.

And thus, that's going to be an important race to watch when looking at utility rates.

All right.

There's additional issues that necessarily are front and center in this election, but may be happening later in future elections.

Water, data centers, immigration could come back as well.

Let me just ask one real brief question to you, Rachel, I suppose, about these future issues that may come to the fore.

Which ones do you think Arizona's or younger Arizona's are really going to be a paying attention to?

I think our generation is really going to look at gun control and gun reform in the future here.

Our generation is unique.

We grew up with practicing school shooting drills.

And that's something that not many future or previous generations have experienced.

And so I think that that's something that's really important to younger people is feeling safe at school and making sure our little sisters, our little brothers, maybe our children feel safe and we feel comfortable sending them to schools.

All right.

Well, we're looking ahead to the election as all of us are.

And I really appreciate your participation of the panel.

A lot of great knowledge for you guys out here today and good luck.

And that's all the time we have for The Press Room for all of our guests, staff and crew.

Thanks for being with us.

We'll see you next week.

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More information is available at pyramidfcu.com.

This has been an original production of AZPM News.