The main themes to emerge from these 'on the spot' responses include:
- There is a lack of political education in schools
- The representation of politics in the media is too complicated
- Political communication is not targeted at young people or used enough online
- Young people don't understand the different parties and their policies
- Young people are too focussed on the 'here and now' to take an interest in politics
Do you agree with these statements or have anything to add? Perhaps more importantly do you disagree with any of these statements?
Posts
I agree with all the above statements, however the point made about how politics and that the promotion of its content is not targeting young people may be the main reason I did not vote last year (in Norway). I find that is is too much information at one time, and that simple informative campaigns targeted on i.e. university students/college students etc. would result in us being more active in "their game".
Correction: "How political campaigns are not targeted at young people.."
As a political activist myself (I have been an election agent in two general and two local elecetions in the UK), I am always amazed at how uncaring British students are about the politics. It is defeatist! Thomas Jefferson said that "a little revolution is a good thing", but students today are too self-absorbed and consumerist to care about their fellow citizens- or even themselves. What happened to good-old-fashioned rabble rousers who want to change the world?
Beth, the vox pops works really well as a means of introducing the topic - much better than a written piece. Are you going to use it for other topics?
Trevor
Yes, I plan to! It's really interesting how each person in the video holds a slightly different view. I aim to explore each given reason in depth.
Hi, im a 25 year old student and I think that it's lack of faith in the government and it's ability to positively effect the voter has decreased voting amongst youths.
People have seen the government betray it's public, a recent example; the decision to go to war in iraq - public opinion polls prooved that it's public did not want war, yet the government did it anyway. What is the point in voting if, when it comes to the crunch, we are ignored?
Another contributing factor is that once you get under the surface, most political parties are the same with similar agendas and policies.
I would like to add that Dr Catherines' comment
"What happened to good-old-fashioned rabble rousers who want to change the world?"
Is quite ironic as most of the people i know are not simply selfish or ignorant but dont vote because they know full well that no matter which party is in power, their needs will not be put first and the country will not be managed competently - the world will not change.
I don't think the world will not change. I think the world is changing all the time! I'm 21 and I die a little inside every time I hear a student say something so cynical or express their apathy about politics.
I think all of the issues raised here are valid. However, I also think that our generation has not had to fight for anything: it seems that we take for granted our rights and don't see that we must continue to exercise them (by voting, for example) so that they are not taken away from us.
I like to believe that we are the most liberal generation so far, and certainly I encounter this in discussions about politics. However the to-ing and fro-ing between Labour and Conservatives does not give much space to our largely liberal voice. The smaller parties are not seen as real contenders. I often hear people say that they would love to vote for a smaller left wing party, but it is seen as a 'wasted vote' as they know, due to the way the political voting system works in the UK, that the party they vote for will not win the election.
Politics is confusing. The language used to discuss it in the media is not accessible to everyone. It is dominated by elitist attitudes, which exclude a lot of people from participating. However, I have noticed a few small articles in the glossy mags that summarise the biggest parties policies as simply as possible, which has given me a little bit of hope.
It is true that political parties do not take young people’s votes seriously. The BBC QuestionTime For First Time Voters episode highlights that; with a substantial amount of time being taken up with the discussion of celebrity and politics. It was rather insulting. I am no expert on politics; I have only developed a serious interest since starting Uni in September. Previously, I felt that it was something that alienated me. The internet should definitely be used more effectively to educate young people about politics.
I still intend to 'change the world' and I know I am not alone in this! There are still crazy idealists in our generation Dr Catherine. Don’t right us off just yet!
The problem may lie in that there is not enough obviously wrong in this country. That is not to say there are no problems, but in everyday student life the only problem we really encounter is debt-culture, and even that will not affect us until after graduation.
It is hard to get riled up and feel passionate about something that is not directly affecting you. Not everybody understands that even the smallest political decisions can shape the future.
Most students, and people around my age (20)that I know are not going to vote as they "do not see the point". They don't think their individual vote can make a difference, and even if it could, they feel all the political parties are far too similar. The view that all the mainstream parties have become too similar is interesting due to the fact all they ever seem to do is point out there differences.
I disagree that young people are not targeted by political parties. When elections come round politicians understand a student vote can be very important. It is the rest of the time young people seem neglected by politics, it often feels as if they see us as an opportunity to gain votes and not much more. Politics should try talking to students at all times, not just at times when they need us.
Personally, I have started taking a great deal of interest in the politics of this country. It is no easy task. Who are we to believe? The media that puts a spin on everything to sell stories? The politicians simply trying to gain votes? Politics in this country is too hard to trust, and it is far too opaque. Perhaps if politics was more transparent students would be encouraged to jump on board and make their votes count, knowing they were truly voting for the right people.