Junqueras' elevator and the PP's coffee machine

BarcelonaOriol Junqueras explains what the Autonomous Liquidity Fund (FLA) is from an elevator. The president of Aragon, Jorge Azcón, does it with a blackboard. And the PP uses Cartoons to criticize the forgiveness of part of the debt in Catalonia. They are all videos on social networks to explain, each in their own way, the agreement of the Republicans with the PSOE for Forgive 17 billion euros of the FLA in the Generalitat. Political parties have been trying to innovate on social media for some time to get their political messages across to their potential audience. That is why we see politicians in contexts and settings that we are not used to: Junqueras in an elevator, Azcón with a whiteboard.

The aim is to adapt political content to a sphere that has more and more followers, because it is also where the political battle to win followers is fought. However, as the political communication and social media consultant Xavier Tomàs explains, the language must be adapted to each context so that the message is effective: it is not the same when a person looks at their mobile phone as when they read the newspaper. "You have to generate content designed for the networks, not use them as a rehash of the press," he explains in conversation with the ARA. The consultant recalls that the FLA is a "tedious" content and that using tools such as a blackboard or a space such as the elevator are good examples to approach the target audience. The political communication consultant of Ideograma, Xavier Peytibi, adds that with more educational content, such as that which some parties have produced about the FLA, more "impact" is achieved: "When you send less ideological, more entertaining, audiovisual and innovative messages, you manage to have a greater impact with the message," he says.

The government of Castilla-La Mancha has opted for a video that aims to be just as educational about the FLA, but without using the face of its president, Emiliano García-Page. In this case, it is a young man who explains why the cancellation of part of the FLA's debt benefits his community. "Generating more soft, which without being so ideological, resonate better with people who are not ideologized," Peytibi points out.

With the FLA, the parties have displayed their latest ideas on social networks, but they have been trying to be creative for some time. The PP in Madrid has tried to emulate the series Camera cafe and has installed a camera in a supposed coffee machine at its headquarters in the Spanish capital. Party leaders in the region parade around there with a single theme: attacking the Spanish president, Pedro Sánchez, and his government. "They give the political talk of the day and it allows them to comment on current events," explains Tomàs.

In the case of the PP, its spokesman in Congress, Miguel Tellado, has made his videos habitual"tiktokers"who try to "break the barrier" of their role as spokesperson, explains Tomàs.

However, recently the PP has gone further by introducing AI and even causing, a diplomatic conflict with the Dominican Republic. He posted a video under the motto of the Island of Corruptions in which Sánchez's entourage could be seen in swimsuits going to the Caribbean country. This Saturday, however, he returned parodying the wife of the Spanish president, Begoña Gómez, and left-wing leaders such as Iñigo Errejón with the 8-M.

The direct relationship

There are politicians who also use social media to try to interact with citizens. This is the case, for example, of the President of France, Emmanuel Macron, who answers questions from his followers; but there are also examples in the State, such as the President of Galicia, Alfonso Rueda. However, experts in political communication admit that both in Catalonia and in Spain this communication through social media is still underdeveloped compared to other countries. And in this sense, both Tomás and Peytibi emphasize one issue: correctly segmenting messages so that they have an impact. Tomàs, in this sense, defends that advertising is key, although it is still little used here.