How social media is changing the way we talk - The Global Story podcast, BBC World Service

[@BBCWorldService]

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[@salihahilmy8804]

Neil, you are here, one of my favourite person of 6 minutes english

[@mahasiswaaktivitas]

And he looks great ❤

[@taozhao1797]

Just what I wanna say, I always hear his voice, too!

[@Hanady_star]

The same ❤❤

[@eliashagstam]

Him saying “the skibidi rizzler” has got me on the floor 😂😂 thanks bbc

[@charlotteforever7442]

Could you explain please what it means?

[@nanciolivieri8821]

Good to see you all, but specially Neil, because I listen all the podcasts from bbc learning english and always wonderered how you look like!

[@pink221]

I love this breakdown of how the English language is evolving over time. Internet culture has definitely accelerated this. Very fascinating!

[@mydogisbailey]

I’m a Canadian living in Paris and what surprised me is that some french young men use “goat” even when speaking french

[@EuiHwanP]

It has surprisingly made its way into Korean as well, used more as an adjective than a noun

[@IsaacLampart]

Wow this is my first time hearing a BBC world service presentation. I'm surprised how professional this was.

[@Kotramail]

This was entertaining to watch and it had me wondering of the chances that the world will be speaking the same language ages down the road.

[@fernandafantini7281]

From my perspective, the most perfect scenario would be me speaking in my native language (Portuguese) and you understanding everything - and vice-versa. I believe it’s rather more interesting than the idea of everybody speaking/understanding only one language. First of all, this last option is the laziest one, and we are on a constant need of improving our minds. It’s healthier, it helps to prevent Neuro degeneration. Second of all, diversity improves the cultural quality of our knowledge. Because language IS culture. Think about what Z-ers (and Pandemic-ers) could do on slang innovation if they could use absolutely ALL the languages in the world as tools. It would be mind blowing!! And third of all, technology is so helpful when it comes to simplifying our language learning, so why not to completely dive into this ocean? 😍😍😍😍

[@ЭлинаРомис]

I was very glad to hear Neil's familiar voice. My favorite in 6 minutes english

[@user-km2bz8iy5o]

I've noticed similar the convergence of US and Australian slang among people 12-29, undoubtedly due to social media like IG and TIkTok

[@biscuitheque79]

Many factors here: IQ is declining, slang is spreading faster than ever before via social media, young people lacking etiquette, manners and respect, digital technology is gleaning information/young people lacking the attention spans to read books. Basically a dumbing down because of 'influencers' AKA bad influences. Disturbing that this generation behave/talk like entitled cartoon characters. Bro.

[@carlito6038]

1. IQ is not declining. bullshit metric 2. Where is the proof that young people especially are lacking manners and respect - the internet allows everybody to lack respect and get away with it 3. Bro

[@_ArsNova]

@@carlito6038 IQ is most definitely declining. Behavioral issues and disorders for young people are at an all time high. They no longer have the attention spans to read even short books, let alone large epics. More and more talentless "influencers" are becoming their idols. The future is looking absolutely dim for future generations.

[@foobarf8766]

The Q in IQ is a quotient, but you can speak for yourself about it's decline🤦

[@Rinzler511]

@@carlito6038 IQ is most definitely declining. Behavioral issues and other disorders for young people are at an all time high. They no longer have the attention spans to read even short books, let alone large epics. More and more talentless "influencers" are becoming their idols. The future is looking very dim for future generations.

[@Rafterman955]

@@carlito6038 The level of cope here is unreal. All the things he said are true. Gen Z can't watch anything longer than a TikTok let alone read something like Ulysses or War & Peace. Behavioral issues and disorders have skyrocketed since the advent of the internet.

[@mercegarro]

Brilliant as always the 3 of you .. Neil a master!!! thanks..

[@samgraves7330]

This is so interesting. As for the nouns becoming verbs. My daughter informed me this morning that ‘her hair is not hairing’ to expressed how her hair wouldn’t go right….

[@tauhidulislam7242]

Neil is getting old, my childhood hero, English muster.

[@janetmckenzie146]

What disturbs me most is that Gen Z was never taught cursive. They can’t even read well-written cursive, or write it at all. They are cut off from the long history of cursive, even prosaic things like a letter from Grandma. Cursive English is basically a foreign language to Gen Z.

[@notmyrealname6272]

I laughed when a 12-year-old piano pupil of mine told me how the generation below her(age 9 etc) spoke in a language she couldn’t understand. 😂

[@danielwhyatt3278]

LMAO. Oh god every generation is doomed now I guess.

[@notmyrealname6272]

@@danielwhyatt3278 😱😂😂

[@sannefridolin]

What about using the word "like" several times randomly sprinkled into every sentence? It drives me crazy!

[@KaylahH]

That has been a thing way before social media

[@foobarf8766]

That's US vernacular English. Nothing to do with social media, British have even more annoying habits like omitting glottal stops, like ya o wha I een

[@EdwardLindon]

It's an intrinsic part of every language.

[@EE-uj6tw]

Something about it drives me mad as well. “Ohhhh my gawdddd,like literallyyyy,like” in that sing song valley girl voice 🤬

[@henrietta9206]

Like, I totally understand like...what you're like...saying..like. 🙂

[@sutats]

Its good to see the changes and your quite right. Their the right kind of words to discuss. Rizz for Cha"ris"ma.

[@aufi_versatile]

It's giving BBC world service

[@SkpalTube]

We are also seeing a reverse trend with people exploring languages beyond their mother tongue - Americans learning Korean or Japanese due to the rise of popular culture.

[@one_field]

Stop trying to make "fetch" happen!

[@danielwhyatt3278]

“IT’S NOT GONNA HAPPEN.”😂😂

[@eunyog]

Thank you so much for these interesting videos with latest trends. I learn a lot from your Channel: English, news...

[@sorchamusic]

“Skibidi” is a secret language nonsense word similar to saying “hip” in the 70s or “radical” in the 80s or “gnarly”in the 90s. Older generations were befuddled by these expressions then and that was the point.

[@RingoRocket-h1d]

I used the word "keystroke" at work and no one knew what it meant.

[@henrietta9206]

dovetail, bandwidth horrible pretentiousness.

[@claudiamueller5475]

When I was a teenager here in germany, finding anything to watch in english was sooooooo difficult. Now, my son watches english KZbin videos and he has not even started it in school. He has been using „cringe“ without knowing it is a real word. Just so fascinating.

[@eunyog]

I really love The Global Story series!!!!!

[@markydh3]

1:19 in, literally just as the conversation started, the presenter referred to her children as kids. Now, this may be a an example of language changing from one generator the next, but my grandparents would've corrected the presenter at this point and stated the correct word would be indeed be children (with a kid being a young goat). Another point that I remember being picked up by my grandparents when they watched TV was 'bin', instead of 'been', with most media presenters these days falling foul to that. The pronunciation of the letter 'T' can be significantly lacking too.

[@TinLeadHammer]

Do you use "gay" as "happy"?

[@nathanielfleku3416]

😂​@@TinLeadHammer

[@Naraintube]

My son is 5 will see how it goes 😊.

[@elisabeth_ntt3904]

Neil… his my favorite

[@CerejaStudies]

The Portuguese are mad because their kids are speaking Brazillian Portuguese because the kids watch too much Brazillian KZbinrs and because of that they started speaking with our accent and grammar and also the slangs. For me this is funny!

[@emileigh6524]

90% of the words are AAVE for them to be linguistics and not know that is baffling.

[@heyerikan]

💯💯💯💯💯💯💯💯💯💯💯💯💯💯💯💯💯💯💯💯

[@0KiteEatingTree0]

Every generation has brought new language influencers

[@jujitsujew23]

These changes are a generational fad. I notice that Gen X terms are not used widely anymore because they’ve gotten older and mainstream culture has moved on from saying, “hella, gnarly, bitchin, fly, rad, etc”

[@mahasiswaaktivitas]

I love language changes ❤ I love how it becomes trends

[@greciacharry2284]

Skibidi means something is cool, bad, or dumb, or it can just be a filler word to use instead of ``um''- it originated from a surrealist video series on KZbin

[@doctorstrange-s1f]

I love all your videos!

[@ak-sher]

it happened 2000 years ago, it happened 5000 years ago it happened after 19th century and 20th century. it will happen again. For anyone is concerned, your language would exist in some form, but the meanings of words would change, in some cases completely, taking over some different meaning completely.

[@thaomyy1012]

That's good to hear, thanks so much

[@elaminkakoom4828]

It's an innate tendency of the new generation at all times and places, as rebellion against reality is a characteristic of young people who are fed up with a boring life with repetitive scenes and activities!

[@sen-ni8ri]

The huzz will love this

[@shyft09]

or... it's just kids making up stupid words because it's fun, and has the added benefit of excluding adults or anyone else they dont like from the club

[@piernikowyloodek]

Such a fun video!

[@tatzybatzy1286]

I’m still going with ‘groovy’…

[@lisbethbird8268]

Stay in that groovy groove!🌈

[@paintedpony2935]

Far out, man!

[@CHINKEII-lh8rl]

Social media is not problematic. It is the contents that dramatically changed our thinking and actions. It should be monitored by AI in the future.

[@melomelooons6733]

Yeah, the monitoring is really lax in many ways. Robots are already doing it but imo they could do it better when we're talking about young vulnerable people. It's just not in the best interest of these mega corporations to do so. Legislation is needed to force them to comply.

[@sparkysmalarkey]

Content that dramatically changes our thinking and actions is bad? Protecting people only makes them less able to compete when they inevitably join the world.

[@CHINKEII-lh8rl]

I agree with you that it’s beneficial, it accelerates social advancement. But if its contents were controlled by its company, then it’s possible to make them beneficial for special groups. By controlling stocks, defaming celebrities or helping publicity of politicians, anyone would have definite advantages. So should companies themselves to monitor themselves?

[@sparkysmalarkey]

@@CHINKEII-lh8rl Teach kids how to gather and analyze data for themselves, teach them how to learn . . . not what to learn.

[@agatabasinska4828]

Have you noticed a lot of people use second verb form instead of the third one in Present Perfect. I’ve heard it so many times in different podcasts

[@GilbertoSanchezIII]

Muy interesante topic

[@吳二-l2q]

language adapts to new enviroments, anything is in a state of flux.

[@EdwardLindon]

Heraclitus has entered the chat.

[@Rafterman955]

And when the environment is a cesspool so too becomes the language.

[@aprilinaprastari453]

Interesting. There also new words in Bahasa Indonesia. I wonder how many new vocabs in Arabic, Japanese or Chinese....

[@luckm8852]

The term skibidi exploded in Malaysia cutting across all age groups owing to a most unexpected source - a religion-based cult known by its latest name GISBH. The bizarre cult produced a music video with men clad in Islamic garb singing about their late cult leader using the term skibidi. Now most people in Malaysia have heard of skibidi but have very different ideas about what it actually means.

[@AsFewFalseThingsAsPossible]

It's cool to notice that cool is still a cool word.

[@belindaoliver804]

I've noticed that 'ought' is on the way out, in Malaysia only?

[@najmaasalaxi]

I didn't listen to a podcast more than 3 minutes in my whole life but this was really beautiful 😍

[@Integral77777]

If the way people speak english change more oftenly it wont be good for the language I think, at one point human groups will not be able to understand each other. And social media will cause it.

[@EdwardLindon]

What, you mean it'll become, like, DIFFERENT LANGUAGES😱 Oh, no, whatever will we do then?

[@EE-uj6tw]

@@EdwardLindonOh my gawwdd,like literally Edward,like wat evarrr

[@logingames5.2M]

Karen word is also becoming very popular

[@gabriieIl]

it’s been popular for years my guy

[@paintedpony2935]

'Karen' is a gender-neutral archetype.

[@sleepy_dobe]

All these new "words" invented by the young should be vigoriously examined to see if it should be accepted as legitimate words. Are we changing the English language for change's sake? Does it improve anything? Is it in the name of progress? If so, what progress if any, does it achieve? Also, one of them mentioned that cliques or groups may be formed by the use of certain terms. In that if someone from outside a group of people, a mother for eg, starts to use that word with her kids, they would stop using that word and switch to something new. What would that do to the mother psychologically, who "learnt" the new word in order to fit in? Would these new words then perpetuate the symptom of exclusion and discrimination within societies, and perhaps foster even more hate among different communities, cliques, groups, etc?

[@balogunlikwid]

These words are mostly gen alpha terms people forget that this is a spectrum. Its mostly late genz and gen alpha using these terms.

[@lanternlis1425]

Is it those people's first day on Earth? Wdym 'it was different in the earlier days' have you forgotten how you yourself as a kid/teens used to speak in 'code'... I believe the pace is more or less the same

[@saudia742]

I have been listing to both geys since 2019 and I learned a lot thanks

[@paintedpony2935]

Spelling isn't one of them.

[@davidlukin5441]

( you can not back to the future in either direction more than 50 years without needing the “AI” language translator apt “) ( just staying in normal mainstream English not talking about new generation way of speaking English. )

[@melomelooons6733]

I was also a teen in the 2000's and thus a millenial but now I'm already 40. It feels like "millenial" is always being thrown around to refer to any younger generations. The Tik Tokers. It's about time we come up with another term. Skibidi toilet to you too folks. (had to google that...)

[@Barry-dy3mn]

I would have liked some actual examples of linguaside in the world.

[@sophiasg]

I’ll have a whole book out with plenty of examples in 2026! ❤

[@Barry-dy3mn]

@@sophiasg Congratulations! I'll be waiting for this. Hope fortune follows your publication.

[@KrishnaKumar-zt9es]

Nice 👍

[@rakibhossain4907]

Already we show the power of gen-z in font of the world. 🎉🎉 So language😂 just nothing

[@perfect8254]

“Socialising” is becoming “peopling” 🤷🏾‍♂️

[@KWwI-xu7vm]

It’s a big L for us to speak differently fr we have zero aura chat.

[@izazkhan9027]

From a Marxist standpoint, the generational distance can be analyzed as a product of historical materialism and the evolution of class structures under capitalism: 1. Generational Distance as a Reflection of Material Conditions Economic Base and Superstructure: Each generation grows up under a specific mode of production, which shapes its worldview and cultural practices. For example: Older generations may have lived in a period of relative economic stability under welfare capitalism or industrial economies. Younger generations face precarity, gig economies, and neoliberal policies, fostering different values and priorities. Alienation: Capitalism alienates individuals from their labor, community, and even their cultural heritage. Younger generations may feel alienated from older ones because their lived experiences are mediated through hyper-commercialized and globalized systems (e.g., social media, consumer culture). 2. Exploitation and the Shifting Labor Paradigm Changing Labor Dynamics: The industrial workforce, which defined older generations, has shifted toward service economies and digital labor. Younger generations experience increased casualization and exploitation (zero-hour contracts, unpaid internships), deepening the gap. Generational Wealth and Class Conflict: Older generations, particularly in capitalist societies, often hold a disproportionate share of wealth (e.g., property, pensions), while younger generations face debt, housing crises, and stagnant wages. This economic disparity creates intergenerational tensions rooted in class conflict. 3. Commodification of Youth Culture Youth as a Market: Capitalism commodifies youth culture, creating a consumer identity that further separates generations. For example, the rapid production of trends (via TikTok or Instagram) leads to cultural fragmentation. Culture Industry: According to Marxist theorists like Adorno and Horkheimer, the culture industry manipulates youth identity to sustain consumer capitalism, alienating younger generations from organic cultural expressions and traditional values. 4. Ideological Apparatus Role of the State and Media: Generational ideologies are shaped by the dominant ideology of their time. Older generations may have been influenced by Cold War propaganda, while younger generations are shaped by neoliberal globalism or the climate crisis narrative. False Consciousness: Marxist critique suggests that generational divides may be exaggerated or manipulated to divert attention from class struggle, fostering blame between generations rather than against capitalist systems. 5. Historical Materialism Dialectical Process: Generational differences can be understood dialectically. Older generations represent the “thesis” of established norms, while younger generations embody the “antithesis” of rebellion or reform. The resulting “synthesis” reflects broader societal evolution under capitalism. Epochal Change: Each generation is a product of its historical moment. For example: Baby Boomers: Post-WWII reconstruction and the expansion of capital. Gen Z/Alpha: Late-stage capitalism, climate crisis, and digital commodification. 6. Political Implications Revolutionary Potential: Marxist analysis emphasizes that younger generations, as the most disenfranchised under current capitalism, may have the greatest revolutionary potential. Their struggles against systemic issues (e.g., climate change, wealth inequality) align with broader proletarian interests. Co-optation of Generational Movements: Capitalist systems often co-opt youth-led movements (e.g., environmental activism) to serve capital-friendly agendas, diffusing revolutionary potential and maintaining intergenerational divides. 7. Bridging Generational Distance Through Marxism Class Consciousness: Recognizing that generational differences are secondary to class struggle can unite younger and older workers against shared exploitation. Solidarity: Marxism emphasizes solidarity over division, urging both generations to focus on dismantling systemic exploitation rather than blaming each other for economic and social challenges. Historical Education: Encouraging both generations to study capitalism’s historical development can foster mutual understanding and highlight shared struggles. This Marxist critique complements academic, linguistic, technological, sociological, anthropological, and political analyses, offering a unifying framework for understanding generational dynamics within the broader capitalist system.

[@MANFREDNEILMANN]

I think you ended up at the wrong channel.

[@Gardenparty-dq3qg]

yes language is changing and school is still using old english ...i am having hard time listening that skibidi thing from my 8yo 😂

[@kubuprem]

I think the "you are killing me ', has a positive connotations now. Isnt it? Semantic change? Same with word gay.. In the past, gay means happy now it means homosexual person. Isn't it?

[@lisaw44]

It’s literally just slang from Black american culture. But of course, the people who don’t identify with our culture need to commodify and hyper analyze it beyond the point of relevance. But, go off 🙄

[@Layla12251]

Do they read books or do they just stare at tiktok all day?

[@_ArsNova]

They can't watch videos longer than 90 seconds, you think they can read books??

[@henrietta9206]

def the latter.

[@shyft09]

It's a good point, but they weren't the ones who created addictive social media and then spectacularly failed to regulate it

[@_ArsNova]

@@shyft09 How would you regulate it? Because they problem is, they would face massive backlash if they tried to, people don't want it to be regulated. Children shouldn't be allowed to use social media from a purely developmental perspective, but can you imagine the outrage if they tried to enforce that? Or if they tried to enforce ID verification?

[@dennistlc]

10:33 langues can die or live. English can absorb French words and words from all languages. The British empire and the dominance of the English language goes hand in hand. It’s also self confidence. French Canada is insecure about its own existence and afraid of dying out as a language in Quebec, hence all the efforts to stop English from becoming part of the French language. Traffic sign « stop » is the written as stop in France is still arrêt in Quebec. The official language of France will still be French in 100 years. French language may lose its position in Quebec in 100 years if not for all the efforts to ensure its relevance.

[@pink221]

Most of it is American slang.

[@Jesusteama_e_Salva225]

Eii!! Jesus te Ama Muito ❤️Ele não vai desistir de Você 🥰Volta Para Ele !!!RESTA POUCO TEMPO!❤️✝️ ELE NÃO BUSCA PERFEITOS ADORADORES, MAS PECADORES ARREPENDIDOS E DE CORAÇÃO SINCERO QUERENDO MUDAR❤️

[@Rufio_Tane]

Idky BBC bothers with this, what I mean is not the sociology/linguistics behind it but the words themselves, those words will be no caps riz by the end of this podcaste 😅

[@aqdasikram]

Currently it seems odd few phrases but in 2050 people might change it so much; saying 25 years back our elders were speaking almost a variant of Shakespeare. Look at older comments those were as if they were writing a book Now what should I say 😢 or 😂

[@reubensonlyngdohnongpiur777]

In India as well skibidi rizzler

[@EE-uj6tw]

The horrible introduction of “I were stood” and “I were sat” You’re not stooding or satting! I was standing, I was sitting. Sounds absolutely stupid. Add to that “anyways” Who makes that plural?

[@TinLeadHammer]

You were sat by a hostess, like you were told to wash your hands.

[@SvejkarGeorgiaAnna]

@@TinLeadHammer " I was seated by flight attendant" would be my (grammatically old-fashioned but lexically politically correct) interpretation

[@AdoptHospitality]

If u r on social media or chat group, there’s no boundaries for countries. Just groups of people sharing the language that they feel belong and communicate better. Like pick up lines.

[@MohamedAli-ks5qy]

10:05 CUT

[@MK-lm8te]

“Gen Z changing language” when it’s mostly just lingo that Black Americans have been using the whole time or came up with on the spot lol next topic please.

[@marianasalles242]

Dreadful future ahead for the planet and humanity

[@foobarf8766]

😂

[@TWBarb]

the skibidi era

[@TWBarb]

Or maybe I need to add the toilet to that - Skibidi Toilet era 😮help us all!! 😂

[@henrietta9206]

dreadful, ditto.

[@sparkysmalarkey]

They are making the world their own, stop trying to act like ideas from long dead people should reign supreme, that's ego.

[@helenpauls1496]

It’s just an interesting discussion. Every decade there is one, with the use and change in language.

[@EE-uj6tw]

Many “You Tubers” who say “I can’t do anythink” “Anythink gos” ANYTHING!

[@abin-hl9ir]

Could you please do a video about ""dowry death happend in india.. " My friend Dr A j shahana she was doing her pg in ortho in famous trivandrum medical college.. A guy from the same college named Ruwaise, he forced her to commit suicide because of dowry issue. This news was famous in indian newschannel.. Now it is one year after this issue. But no further action is happening beacuse thay guy is from a rich back ground. Please 🙏🙏🙏add a documentary regarding this issue. Dowry related deaths are continuing in India. Please value the life of women🙏. Please help to address this issue. Especially Dr A J Shahana and Ruwaise case. You will get the information from youtube its self🙏

[@Reggie___]

oh gen z's language is unspoken

[@iAMJM27]

It’s NOT Gen Z language. Most of it is African American vernacular (Ebonics). Stop it …

[@markmartinez4976]

A bit slow to pick this up bbc , this has been happening since people started chatting over the net . 🤦‍♂️

[@Jesusteama_e_Salva225]

Hey!! Jesus Loves You So Much ❤️He Won't Give Up on You Come Back to Him!!! LITTLE TIME LEFT!❤️✝️ HE IS NOT LOOKING FOR PERFECT WORSHIPERS, BUT REPENTANT SINNERS WITH A SINCERE HEART WANTING TO CHANGE❤️

[@yolanbravo9628]

❤

[@dominik3482]

That’s not gen z language. Literally no one i know speaks like that. Gen alpha uses it the most.

[@TheVafa95]

People here who are discussing the language are like frogs in boiling water. They see the process of the bastardization of the English language but do not recognize it as such. All because of the culture of "anything-goes-who-are-we-to-judge."

[@wadhaalkhaldi8225]

I try to understand you but I can’t 😢

[@janetmckenzie146]

My teen speaks in Gen Z. It’s like listening to a foreign langiage that you will never really understand. My early 90s shows up in words like awesome or stoked. And ‘no way’ ‘way’ which was once a thing. And early texting, like lol, lmao, gtg (newer, but very useful) and a few others. I have picked up prolly, which is so much shorter than probably. And np. And some ancient computer language like WYSWYG.

[@strongindependentblackwoma1887]

Skibidi Rizz gyat!!!!!

[@vitaliidorda9564]

Speaking of verbalizing nouns, instead of 'to google sth' I would say ' to AI sth' :)

[@Withoutname_009]

We are in the cave.

[@TWBarb]

Skibidi Allegory

[@leman.hzadeh]

♥️

[@OSPINTOSMALACABADOS]

Watching from northeast of Brazil, Barra do Jacuipe, Bahia !

[@heyerikan]

Oi tudo bem

[@heyerikan]

Eu adoro Nazare

[@idreamtiwasbackatmanderley414]

So I’ve just checked if my memory was correct and it was. Since antiquity adults (philosophers in antiquity) have bemoaned re young people education, manners, language… So nothing new, same old same old.

[@izazkhan9027]

I must be an old soul then…