How laughter brought more voters to the polls in Colombia
A week before Colombia’s June presidential run-off, Sebastián Os was perched in the second row of Bogotá’s crowded national theater. Ecstatic, the teen sat just a few feet away from the star of the show, his unlikely hero: a middle-aged political humorist and YouTube celebrity Daniel Samper.
Mr. Samper’s online series, “#HolaSoyDanny” (Hi, I’m Danny), has developed a huge following across Colombia. His show, and the equally popular “La Pulla” (The Taunt), have become the politically minded antiheroes of Colombia’s YouTube generation – which is more accustomed to watching fresh-faced teens perform complicated stunts or makeup routines online.
“I only started learning about serious politics with Daniel,” says 17-year-old Sebastián, who began following “#HolaSoyDanny”
Filling a gap in traditional mediaShifting the political discourse