Politicians need to engage more with popular media in order to appeal to young people, young reporters from the Youth Media for Europe project have said.
The project provided a media platform for young people between the ages of 17 and 25 in the run-up to the EU elections and the Lisbon referendum.
The reporters found young voters to be alienated by political jargon and politicians’ tendency not to answer questions directly.
"I think I now understand why young people are disinterested in politics, or at least why I personally have become disillusioned with it all. It is because politicians never, ever, answer the simple questions they’re asked," young journalist Seamus MacSuibhne said.
According to the Youth Media for Europe report, published today, the EU should push harder to inform young people on how the EU affects them on a daily basis. “There should be one website to house all opportunities that the EU is offering for internships, competitions and information for the youth,” it said.
The report found young people to be particularly sceptical about the role of European politics in their lives “as the EU can be both complicated and remote”.
The report also found issues being debated among politicians to be aimed at older voters, causing younger people to feel distanced from politicians. It recommended that youth branches of political parties engage more with younger people to bridge this gap.