How Labour won the Twitter war but lost the election

In an age of digital bread and circus, serious policy messages can be easily swamped

A broadcast of Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn's resignation in the wake of his party's loss in the British election last Friday. The polls provided many examples of how social media has further hollowed out what were already tired practices of political
A broadcast of Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn's resignation in the wake of his party's loss in the British election last Friday. The polls provided many examples of how social media has further hollowed out what were already tired practices of political communication, says the writer. PHOTO: BLOOMBERG
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In the end, the election turned into something approaching a rout. The Conservative Boris Johnson was returned as Prime Minister with an increased majority of 80 seats, while the main opposition Labour Party shed three million votes since the last election 21/2 years ago.

What happened?

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A version of this article appeared in the print edition of The Straits Times on December 16, 2019, with the headline How Labour won the Twitter war but lost the election. Subscribe