In the 2013 episode of Black Mirror, “The Waldo Moment,” an animatronic bear named Waldo becomes a political candidate in a parliamentary election. While this idea may seem far-fetched – how could a cartoon character ever become a real political candidate? – the concept that drives the episode is firmly rooted in an idea that has been circulating for decades – politics is increasingly becoming a form of entertainment.

Waldo represents what people respond to in politicians – humor and honesty. At the beginning of the episode, Waldo provided humorous commentary on the politicians and their ideologies. The audience responded well to this commentary, and the television producers decided that they would register Waldo as a real candidate to bring more attention to Waldo’s show. Surprisingly to the producers, Waldo did well in the polls due to his honest opinions on the state of modern-day politics and his ability to entertain and relate to the public. Waldo’s honesty is borderline brutal and his humor often crass and juvenile. While the premise of a comedic cartoon bear attaining political power sounds outlandish and silly, this episode sheds light on very real fears and realities that we are facing in the current state of our politics.

This episode is focused around the anxiety of the power of social media in society. This episode came out before the 2016 U.S. presidential election, and a lot of the anxieties around that election reflect the anxieties of this episode. While Donald Trump is a real human, many on the left saw him as a caricature, a joke that would never make it past the primaries. But, they were wrong. People connected with his populist position and his sensationalism and attempts at humor on social media. To the surprise of many, he won not only the primary, but the general election, and became the president of the U.S. So, in many ways, we have seen the anxieties of this episode play out in real life.

Furthermore, sensational messages are given the foreground in news media channels and therefore gain the most attention from the public. Waldo’s candidacy was depicted as being both shocking and thrilling. His disconnect from humanity and the stereotypical politician is appealing. Waldo represents much of the common discourse around politics that can be seen on social media platforms, such as Twitter, and the media in general. To quote Ronald Reagan, “Politics is like show business.” The public is drawn to drama. Thus, a dramatic politician, such as Waldo or Donald Trump, is going to gain a lot of attention. While many of Donald Trump’s tweets are jarring, comedic, and sometimes even disturbing, he has 55.2 million followers that eagerly await his next one and media channels that prey on them.

This episode of Black Mirror calls attention to the dangers of the societal thirst for entertainment and controversy. Rather than letting the media and this thirst govern us, we should be tuned in to the intellectual capabilities and true leadership properties of our social leaders and confront the persuasive aspects of digital/visual media.

 

written by Coleman, Suzi, and Abby