SOCIAL MEDIA AND THE GULLIBLE PUBLIC

UK Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn claimed a train was so packed he was forced to sit on the floor. The CCTV footage told a different story.

Geoffrey Stackhouse, Managing Director, Clarity Solutions

I'm loving Jeremy Corbyn's latest stunt. At least, I'm loving watching how easy it is to manipulate a gullible public with some scripted video footage, a touch of novelty and a popular issue.

In 2016, communication is all about emotion, passion and novelty. If you're old school, and believe in the power of facts and logical argument, your message won't get through.

In fact, you'll probably be criticised for being dull and out of touch. Either way the message is lost.

Corbyn, the UK's Labour Opposition Leader, was 'caught' sitting on the floor of crowded train on a three hour London to Newcastle journey.

In a scripted and professionally shot video he explained he couldn't justify spending taxpayer dollars upgrading to first class while the taxpayers were 'ram-packed' in cattle class.

The incident was widely reported and extensively shared, attracting hundreds of thousands of likes and comments praising his humility, calling him a modern day saint etc.

Then two hours later, by sheer coincidence, he released a policy to Nationalise British trains. 

But no one is calling it out for the cheap stunt that it was.

And no-one is mentioning the logical counter argument: He wasted three hours of taxpayer funded time, around A$300+ in salary alone, sitting on the floor when he could have been working.

And all to save A$50. Simple Maths that shows he shouldn't be running the country.  

So three insights I took from 'Cattlegate':

 1. Focus on emotion, don't rely on figures and logic because the public won't get it.

 2. A simple and well planned stunt, linked to a key announcement, is the best way of capturing the public's attention.

 3. The most powerful communication is visual - a tight sound bite oozing sincerity gets shared, written thought leadership is yesterday.