Kamala Harris on SNL vs. Peanut the Squirrel—What Social Media Tells Us About Trending Narratives

Over a busy election weekend, social media attention was divided in surprising ways. PeakMetrics found that while Kamala Harris’s Saturday Night Live (SNL) appearance drove major conversation, an unexpected topic—“Peanut the Squirrel” in the context of the election—rivaled it in engagement on X (formerly Twitter). This highlights how digital audiences balance mainstream and fringe narratives, amplifying discussions from both ends of the spectrum.

Who was Peanut the Squirrel? 

Peanut the Squirrel, a social media favorite known for his playful videos and bond with his caretaker, Mark Longo, was recently euthanized by New York State authorities after being seized over wildlife possession rules. The incident has since sparked political debate, with figures like Elon Musk and Senator JD Vance condemning it as "state overreach."

What the Data Shows: 

Kamala Harris’s SNL performance, starting Saturday evening, generated significant attention. By midnight, posts mentioning Harris on SNL peaked, amassing 455,367 mentions through the weekend. Meanwhile, “Peanut the Squirrel” in the context of the election also sparked widespread discussion, gathering 925,826 posts from Saturday morning through Monday. The Harris SNL posts briefly surpassed Peanut-related posts on Sunday morning but stayed close in volume through Sunday and Monday.

Notably, both of these zeitgeist moments generated more X posts compared to the somewhat past-peak volume of posts about Trump and Biden’s garbage comments, which saw around 285,406 mentions — about 45% less than the number of Kamala SNL posts. This contrast shows how, in the world of social media, audiences often prioritize culturally resonant or unexpected narratives, even alongside major political themes.

What’s surprising is that narratives from right-wing online spaces—like the viral story of Peanut the Squirrel—can rival or even surpass mainstream moments, such as Harris on SNL, in engagement. This underscores the influence of these often-overlooked spaces, which are reshaping the public conversation in ways many miss. For brands and media professionals, it’s a reminder of the importance of monitoring diverse narratives; conversation flows dynamically across both expected and unexpected spaces, with social media fueling real-time shifts in discourse, especially in today’s post-election climate.