Calling out 1 Bullshit on Gen Z: They Don’t Care of Politics

Every generation has its own false myths, but there may be one that unites younger populations from every era: youth doesn’t care about politics. This tropos seems to resurface with every new demographic group approaching the age of consent. But why is that? Without delving too much into socio-economic explanations, it looks like it’s always a matter of narrative.

Older generations do not understand the way young people address political issues. They talk about them differently — a few examples: strikes are different from flash mobs, demonstrations are different from viral videos — and they have different tools to face them, ergo it looks like they are doing nothing. With these premises, and keeping in mind the huge acceleration that has invested the tech and communication industries, it’s no wonder Gen Z has developed a new, often misunderstood, narrative around politics. And if you want to catch their attention on the topic, you must change your narrative too.

First of all, Gen Z mainly catches up with political news and issues through social media. A poll conducted by Business Insider shows that 59% of their sample of 1,800 people between the ages of 13 and 21 uses social media to find out what’s going on in the world, with TV coming shortly after at 50%. Another considerable percentage is that of young people “avoiding the news”: only 9%. Quite surprising for those who believe that “kids these days don’t care about anything”.

As a consequence of this shift from traditional news outcasts to tech-savvy, hyper-connected ones, content takes the shape of the new means of communication. With Instagram being Gen Z’s go-to place for political information, content gets shorter, and video is king. News and political facts have to take the fast-paced, condensed, easy-to-understand, and, why not, the eye-catching form that is dear to well-crafted Instagram feeds.

Politicians, especially the younger ones, are starting to eat the leaf too. The first Millennial to be ever elected in the US Congress, Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez turned her Instagram stories into a behind the scenes of American politics, unveiling processes and idiosyncrasies, making her role more relatable and appealing to the need for the authenticity of younger generations.

Ocasio-Cortez’s example is part of a wave of politicians using Instagram, Twitter and YouTube to spark the conversation about national and worldwide issues, engaging viewers and making them feel empowered to enact the changes they prospect. And Gen Z is answering the call, both online and offline.

2018 US Midterm Elections have witnessed younger generations outvoting the older ones, with Gen Z and Millennials stacking up one-quarter of the total amount of votes. The reason behind such surging political participation among young voters — and the reverse of the medal to having every news and issues at hand on a smartphone — might be their elevated sense of stress when it comes to politics talk. Raising issues such as white nationalism, far-right populism, climate change, violence against the LGBTQ community, are all depicting an uncertain future for Gen Z. Yet, this generation is facing it with the urge to act and have their voices heard.

But what’s the ace up Gen Z’s sleeve in this ongoing quest for clarity and change in a sea of political turmoil? Their irony.

As conversations about Brexit continued to play out across the news in 2019, creators turned to YouTube to make sense of the confusion. The videos they produced often used humour and satire to express emotions and unpack a complicated issue for the broader public. And audiences welcomed the lighthearted approach: three of the videos were among the top 10 most shared in the U.K., with Still M.A.Y. becoming the #1 most shared video of the year.

An even easier-to-digest tool to create awareness and, at the same time, lighten up the spirits when it comes to crucial political moments are memes. Gen Z reacts to cathartic moments in the history of their nations by eviscerating them through pop-culture references and viral images. That’s how US President Donald Trump’s impeachment sparked a wave of “Merry Impeachment” memes last December, and how UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson’s video inspired by a famous Love Actually scene triggered Gen Z’s need for editing.

Those who really want to up their game when it comes to creating awareness on politics and entertaining their audience at the same time have found in TikTok their faithful ally.

They communicate with irony: politics become “fun” and easily digestible, something that everyone can partake in. Digital culture writer Sarah Manavis ranked up the best TikToks to navigate through UK elections, and they all share the same traits, independently from the party they endorse: being super short, packed with useful info, and hilarious.

That’s what Gen Z is looking for in political talk: being able to generate their own conversations in an easily-understandable way, finding an explanation to what is happening in the world through their own references, and starting a simple yet powerful online action that can be spread offline. And memeing their way across politics.

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This is part of YAD — Understanding Young Audiences Digest: a free monthly digest on young audiences for VOD and TV professionals. We’ve analysed millions of data points and we don’t mind sharing some of them — if this could help channels and commissioners to reach Gen Z, by understanding their needs, behavioural traits and intrinsic cultural values. 

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