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Everything Is Reality TV. And Spencer Pratt Knows It.
In his viral mayoral ad, Spencer Pratt repurposes the same storytelling tricks that once made him a villain on reality TV—and now make him successful. (Photo by FOX via Getty Images)
The reality-TV villain turned mayoral candidate just used the same tactics that once made him infamous to produce one of the most effective, viral political ads in decades.
By Liel Leibovitz
04.30.26 — Culture and Ideas
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Spencer Pratt, one of the greatest reality-TV villains of the 2000s, and a current candidate in the Los Angeles mayoral race, just delivered what may be one of the most effective, viral political ads in decades.

Here’s a brief synopsis: Bathed in ethereal California light, Pratt, 42, stands outside the mansions of incumbent LA mayor Karen Bass and city councilmember (and mayoral candidate) Nithya Raman. They, he tells viewers, do not have to deal with the consequences of their bad policies. Cue the consequences, flashing across the screen: homeless encampments, buildings on fire, a masked man holding a flare in front of a graffitied wall.

“This is where I live,” Pratt says, as the ad cuts to an Airstream trailer on the scorched lot where his Pacific Palisades property used to be. He’s been living there for most of the time since his house burned down in the 2025 LA wildfires. The response to the fires by Bass’s administration has been widely maligned.

“They let my home burn down,” Pratt says in the ad. “I know what the consequences of failed leadership are. That’s why I’m running for mayor.” The camera pans back to reveal his empty lot surrounded by some trees, the sun in the sky, and the campaign’s slogan: “A New Golden Age for Los Angeles.”

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Liel Leibovitz
Liel Leibovitz is Editor at Large at Tablet magazine and a Senior Fellow at the Hudson Institute.
Tags:
Los Angeles
California
Spencer Pratt
Movies
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