How laughter brought more voters to the polls in Colombia
| Bogot谩, Colombia
A week before Colombia鈥檚 June presidential run-off, Sebasti谩n Os was perched in the second row of Bogot谩鈥檚 crowded national theater. Ecstatic, the teen sat just a few feet away from the star of the show, his unlikely hero: a middle-aged political humorist and YouTube celebrity Daniel Samper.
Mr. Samper鈥檚 online series, 鈥�#HolaSoyDanny鈥� (Hi, I鈥檓 Danny), has developed a huge following across Colombia. His show, and the equally popular 鈥淟a Pulla鈥� (The Taunt), have become the politically minded antiheroes of Colombia鈥檚 YouTube generation 鈥� which is more accustomed to watching fresh-faced teens perform complicated stunts or makeup routines online.
鈥淚 only started learning about serious politics with Daniel,鈥� says 17-year-old Sebasti谩n, who began following 鈥�#HolaSoyDanny鈥� earlier this year. 鈥淎t first I was like, 鈥榥o, anarchy! I don't like politicians!鈥� But then with Daniel's videos, 鈥業 was like, this is interesting.鈥� 鈥�
Why We Wrote This
When political differences become entrenched, sometimes humor is an answer. That was the case in Colombia this year, where political participation soared as online, political satire drew in young voters.
Sebasti谩n first watched Samper for the entertainment value. But then he started reading the news to be sure he would 鈥済et鈥� all of Samper鈥檚 jokes. Now, Sebasti谩n is part of a growing trend among young Colombians who may consider all politicians as homogeneous, but who are waking up to the importance of following the news 鈥� and casting ballots.
Colombia鈥檚 recent presidential election saw voter turnout at a 20-year high. New-voter registration rates nearly doubled those of the last presidential election, suggesting an uptick in youth registration. The higher levels of engagement reflect the high stakes and divisions in this election. The two candidates held views on opposite ends of the political spectrum, and the controversial peace process brought to fruition by President Juan Manuel Santos in 2016 polarized voters who disagree on how demobilized fighters should be treated.
A handful of government and nongovernmental-organization efforts focused on mobilizing voters this year, like youth-focused get-out-the-vote campaigns and mock election events. But, in this tense climate, political humor 鈥� online, unfettered, and reaching into the millions of viewers per video 鈥� has proven one of the more popular tools in making sense of the political environment, analysts say. As these programs continue to attract followers, there鈥檚 hope that the medium will further increase political conversation and engagement here.
鈥淏oth 鈥楲a Pulla鈥� and Daniel Samper remind us that political humor is necessary, that it had been something missing in鈥� our news coverage, says Maria Alejandra Medina Cartagena, a communications researcher and journalist. 鈥淲hat makes it successful 鈥� is to be able to criticize everything that is wrong, everything that needs to be criticized鈥� in a way that broadens the conversation beyond political elites.
Filling a gap in traditional media
It is no coincidence, according to Ms. Medina, that 鈥�#HolaSoyDanny鈥� and 鈥淟a Pulla鈥� came out in the spring of 2016. Colombia's two main television stations removed all of their political humor programs in 2013, her research found. At the time, there was a broad fear of alienating audiences and losing money 鈥� as well as self-censorship. In 2013, political polarization was already growing, as popular ex-President 脕lvaro Uribe split from his successor and former minister of defense Santos over how to resolve Colombia's 50-year civil conflict, which left more than 200,000 people, mostly civilians, dead.聽
At the same time, Colombia experienced a burst in online video consumption, according to Google data. The nation鈥檚 monthly YouTube users ballooned to 24 million in 2016, half of the country鈥檚 population. Between 2014 and 2015, the site鈥檚 visitors increased by 75 percent.
Though YouTube and online comedy stars are a new phenomenon here, Colombia long examined its political situation through humor, says Juanita L茅on, head of political website La Silla Vac铆a.聽
鈥淪atire is very important in a country where many people are scared to say what they really think,鈥� Ms. L茅on says of Colombia鈥檚 long history of violence. 鈥淚t becomes the place where truths are said without fear.鈥�
Humor doesn鈥檛 equate a lack of seriousness in reporting. Samper and the team from 鈥淟a Pulla,鈥� for example, are professional journalists with backgrounds at some of Colombia鈥檚 biggest, most reputable print publications.
The lack of barriers to entry on YouTube allowed them to take their reporting chops and present them in new ways online. Both these shows stand out for their basic formulas: rapid-fire, talk-to-the-camera aesthetics, without a lot of bells and whistles.
鈥淚t is recorded with a cell phone, there is no big production, there are no people doing makeup, there are no lights, there are not 20 people on set. Many times my 9- and 10-year-old daughters record it, or my wife,鈥� Samper says. 鈥淭his is the format of our times: homespun videos, hosted on the internet absolutely free鈥� it was a way to mainstream satire.鈥�
Shifting the political discourse
Even with low production value, the topics tackled by these programs are robust. Extensive research goes into each episode.
鈥淲e do this because we鈥檙e trying to give people tools to think about the reality they鈥檙e living in, and for us, that鈥檚 only possible through satire,鈥� Juan David Torres, one of three young journalists behind 鈥淟a Pulla,鈥� says. 鈥淥ur final goal is to tell people, well, this is important for you because it is affecting you. Maybe it鈥檚 harming you. Maybe sometime in the future, it will hurt you. So you really have to pay attention.鈥�
For Mr. Torres, that has also meant using a relatable tone 鈥� almost the opposite of what Colombians see in their nightly news anchors. The on-screen personality of Maria Paulina Baena, the face of 鈥淟a Pulla,鈥� appears frizzy-haired, without makeup, wearing a masculine jacket and tie 鈥� and she's angry. Through her frustration, she channels some of the powerlessness felt by the Colombian public. And for this election, it struck a chord.
鈥淣ormally, the comment we get is that people weren鈥檛 interested in politics until 鈥楲a Pulla鈥� came around,鈥� Ms. Baena says.聽
Colombia has historically struggled with voter turnout, but saw 53.4 percent of the population at the polls in the final presidential election. And while other factors weighed in, new voters 鈥� many of them the young YouTube audiences 鈥� played a key role.
鈥淟a Pulla鈥� released videos criticizing each candidate; episodes on the final contenders, Ivan Duque and Gustavo Petro, were viewed almost two million times each. 鈥�#HolaSoyDanny鈥� featured a 2-hour live 鈥淵ouTubers vs. Candidates鈥� debate, where he brought in young, non-political YouTube personalities to question three of the candidates face-to-face.
Even these politicians knew that their online presence mattered.
According to Santiago Casta帽o, a university student in his early 20s, YouTube humorists like 鈥淟a Pulla,鈥� 鈥�#HolaSoyDanny,鈥� and 鈥淢e Dicen Wally鈥� are his main sources of political news. In a country where many traditional outlets are linked to political parties, Mr. Casta帽o feels that these overtly opinionated YouTube satirists are in the best position to start a dialogue.
鈥淚 think they鈥檝e had a huge influence on the political debate among Millennials,鈥� he says. They criticize political parties indiscriminately, and while they are transparent about their own perspectives, 鈥渢hey don鈥檛 try to impose on you what to think.鈥�
