The TikTok election wars
The Story
The Times
3.9 • 1.6K Ratings
🗓️ 19 June 2024
⏱️ 33 minutes
🧾️ Download transcript
Summary
It’s being described as the UK’s first TikTok election - so can a flying pig, Cilla Black, and Nigel Farage have the power to change the result on the night?
This podcast was brought to you thanks to the support of readers of The Times and The Sunday Times. Subscribe today: http://thetimes.co.uk/thestory
Guests:
- Matilda Davies, Data Journalist, The Times and The Sunday Times.
- Lara Spirit, Red Box Editor, The Times.
Host: Jane Mulkerrins.
Clips: TikTok/@uklabour, Sky News, TikTok/@ukconservatives, TikTok/@libdems, TikTok/@nigel_farage, Twitter/@rishisunak.
Further listening:
- Could the 'blue wall' fall?
- The Green vote, it’s not (only) about the environment
- The UK economy’s broken. Can Labour fix it?
Get in touch: thestory@thetimes.co.uk
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Transcript
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| 1:31.2 | From the Times and the Sunday Times, this is the story. I'm Jane Mulcerrens. So about three days after they announced the election on May 22nd, the Labour Party posted a meme on Tik-Tock. |
| 1:55.0 | In that first week, after Rishi Sunak stood in the pouring rain at Downing Street |
| 2:01.0 | and kicked off the general election. |
| 2:02.8 | Matilda Davies, data journalist at The Times and the Sunday Times, |
| 2:06.8 | was scrolling through the social media video app, Tik-Tock. |
| 2:10.8 | Quite a popular meme with a video of Cilla Black back in 1989, singing the theme of her TV show, |
| 2:18.1 | Surprise Surprise, surprise. |
| 2:23.0 | Surprise! |
| 2:25.0 | The Tories had just come out with an eyebrow raising policy pledge |
| 2:30.0 | that all 18 year olds would have to take part in national service. |
| 2:38.0 | And they captioned it, Ritchie Suunach turning up on your 18th birthday to send you to war? |
... |
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