For the past 25 years, claims on packets of crisps have been subject to more regulation than claims in election campaigns. But that could finally be about to change. Amendments to the Representation of the People Bill promise to apply some of the UK’s strenuous - and effective - advertising standards to election advertising. We are joined by Alex Tait, ad industry veteran and founder of the non-partisan campaign organisation Reform Political Advertising, one of the groups advocating these changes. Alex, together with Benedict Pringle, set up Reform Political Advertising to change the law. What does fact-based election advertising mean in practice? How can regulation that applies to commercial brand advertising improve political trust? How long does it take to turn an idea into a law? And can turkeys really vote for Christmas? 

• Find out more about Reform Political Advertising: https://reformpoliticaladvertising.org/
• Ask Your MP to Prevent Lies in Political Advertising: https://reformpoliticaladvertising.org/take-action/email-your-mp/ 
• The Advertising Standards Authority (ASA) advertising codes: https://www.asa.org.uk/codes-and-rulings/advertising-codes.html 
• Marketing and Advertising - The Law: https://www.gov.uk/marketing-advertising-law 

Also mentioned:

• Vote for Claire (by which we mean, vote to support 6 Ways to Save the Ad Funded Internet at SXSW 2027): https://bit.ly/4gqY9Rf 
• In 2017, Claire interviewed a bunch of political strategists about campaign tactics, and boy did they tell her stuff. Full paper here: https://bit.ly/3TWgsWV 

Related:

• Electoral Commission: Concerns about misinformation are rising, trust in political messaging is falling, and social media may be normalising abuse: https://bit.ly/46fIv6c 

Can We Have Your Attention? is a podcast all about attention. Join hosts Claire Coady and James Wickham as they dive into how your attention is attracted, tracked, traded, and manipulated in the modern attention economy. 

• Hosted by: Claire Coady & James Wickham
• Produced by: Phonogram https://www.phonogram.co.uk in conjunction with The Attention Practice https://www.theattentionpractice.com 
• Find out more on our website https://canwehaveyourattention.com 
• Got a story for us? Email us: [email protected]

Like this episode? If you enjoyed this episode, please click subscribe. If you really liked it, please leave a rating - every rating helps this podcast reach more listeners like you.

We're told the news is an important part of a functioning society. But is our 24-hour, always-on news culture, with bad news to the fore, actually harming us and our institutions?

In this episode, James Wickham and Claire Coady explore the nature of news, its impact on society, and how media practices influence public perception and trust. They discuss whether quality journalism has declined, the rise of social media, and whether regulation would foster a healthier media ecosystem.

From the episode:

The Reuters Digital News Report 2026: https://tinyurl.com/tun9ddad

Reach pivots away from... reach: https://tinyurl.com/48an4ww5

James' media training services: https://www.phonogram.co.uk

Can We Have Your Attention? is a podcast all about attention. Join hosts Claire Coady and James Wickham as they dive into how your attention is attracted, tracked, traded, and manipulated in the modern attention economy. 

• Hosted by: Claire Coady & James Wickham
• Produced by: Phonogram https://www.phonogram.co.uk in conjunction with The Attention Practice https://www.theattentionpractice.com 
• Find out more on our website https://canwehaveyourattention.com 
• Got a story for us? Email us: [email protected] 

Like this episode? If you enjoyed this episode, please click subscribe. If you really liked it, please leave a rating - every rating helps this podcast reach more listeners like you.

Is AI like steroids for disinformation? Claire Coady and James Wickham are joined by Sam Stockwell from The Alan Turing Institute to discuss their research into AI-generated disinformation – from AI songs and fake rappers, to fabricated forensic "evidence" and chatbots that repeat whatever is popular on social media. They discuss why the real problem isn't just deepfakes but sheer volume, and what governments and AI firms can do about it. And do brands and advertisers, who fund the whole ecosystem, hold more leverage than they realise?

From the episode:

Adding Fuel to the Fire: AI Information Threats and Crisis Events via CETaS (The Alan Turing Institute): https://tinyurl.com/3jsaykca 

CETaS AI Disinformation Repository: https://tinyurl.com/nhdb6c6r 

Check My Ads – the digital advertising watchdog: https://checkmyads.org/ 

Can We Have Your Attention? is a podcast all about attention. Join hosts Claire Coady and James Wickham as they dive into how your attention is attracted, tracked, traded, and manipulated in the modern attention economy. 

• Hosted by: Claire Coady & James Wickham
• Produced by: Phonogram https://www.phonogram.co.uk in conjunction with The Attention Practice https://www.theattentionpractice.com 
• Find out more on our website https://canwehaveyourattention.com 
• Got a story for us? Email us: [email protected] 

Like this episode? If you enjoyed this episode, please click subscribe. If you really liked it, please leave a rating - every rating helps this podcast reach more listeners like you.

Has the Age of Attention Scarcity given way to the Attention Revolution? Recent data from Ofcom shows that over the past 12 months, discontent with online life is growing – and people’s behaviours are changing too, with major consequences for the media, advertisers, and communications. As more people avoid the ad-funded internet, and public support for restrictions and bans increases, what’s stopping industry and government from changing?

Claire Coady and James Wickham discuss a year after Claire's Attention Scarcity paper, how we should rethink the media ecosystem, and how attention-aware thinking can help us save it.

Mentioned in this show: 

• The Age of Attention Scarcity - the paper that started this: https://tinyurl.com/2mejpyp2 
• Ofcom: 59% of UK adults say that the benefits of being online outweigh the risks - down from 71% one year ago. https://tinyurl.com/3sbdp6yn 
• Deloitte: 29% of Gen Z smartphone users have deleted a social media app in the last 12 months, citing fatigue, misinformation, and a negative effect on their mental health https://tinyurl.com/3kmfk8ps 
• Ofcom: AI usage reduces Google search clicks, growth in traffic to AI services in 2025 coincides with decrease in traffic to search engines, increase in traffic to news aggregators and health services at the expense of ad-funded news and information websites https://tinyurl.com/4sv662vy 

Can We Have Your Attention? is a podcast all about attention. Join hosts Claire Coady and James Wickham as they dive into how your attention is attracted, tracked, traded, and manipulated in the modern attention economy. 

• Hosted by: Claire Coady & James Wickham
• Produced by: Phonogram https://www.phonogram.co.uk in conjunction with The Attention Practice https://www.theattentionpractice.com 
• Find out more on our website https://canwehaveyourattention.com 
• Got a story for us? Email us: [email protected] 

Like this episode? If you enjoyed this episode, please click subscribe. If you really liked it, please leave a rating - every rating helps this podcast reach more listeners like you.

Trust in news is down, and news avoidance is up. Many people don’t know what to believe, or who to trust. How can legacy media convince audiences to trust them when they're under attack – but loathe to change? Rebecca Skippage, the former Global Disinformation Editor at BBC News, joins Claire and James this week to discuss misinformation, disinformation, legacy media, meeting people where they are, and how organisations like the BBC can rise to the challenge. 

• Find out more about Rebecca Skippage: https://rebeccaskippage.com/
• In the UK, trust in news is at 30% (-5pp) – an all-time low – while news avoidance is at an all-time high of 50% (+4pp). More from the Reuters Institute Digital News Report 2026: https://tinyurl.com/mr36zdpx 
• Email your MP and ask them to support amendments to stop lies in election advertising (via Reform Political Advertising - a politically neutral campaign) https://tinyurl.com/59bbhz2w 

Can We Have Your Attention? is a podcast all about attention scarcity and the War for Attention. Join hosts Claire Coady and James Wickham as they dive into how your attention is attracted, tracked, traded, and manipulated in the modern attention economy. 

• Hosted by: Claire Coady & James Wickham
• Produced by: Phonogram https://www.phonogram.co.uk in conjunction with The Attention Practice https://www.theattentionpractice.com 
• Find out more on our website https://canwehaveyourattention.com 
• Got a story for us? Email us: [email protected] 

Like this episode? If you enjoyed this episode, please click subscribe. If you really liked it, please leave a rating - every rating helps this podcast reach more listeners like you.

Is Britain broken, or is everyone just tired?

Steven Lacey from cultural research company The Outsiders and the think tank Resilience & Reconstruction joins Claire and James to talk about their fascinating research into the forces of life driving populism. What is driving discontent? Why hasn’t politics been able to meet this challenge? And does the answer lie in reviving communities and the high street?

• The Outsiders: The cultural insight agency founded by Steven Lacey https://outsidersinsight.com/ 
• Resilience & Reconstruction Think Tank: https://www.iorar.org/ 
• The webinar recording on their recent research into the language, drivers and motivations behind right-wing populism: https://tinyurl.com/3psjjk4f 
• An example of a local third space in action - “How Barnes & Noble Became Private Equity’s Most Radical Retail Experiment” via Bloomberg Businessweek: https://tinyurl.com/ypskz7kd (paywall)
• The best museum I have ever, ever visited on a work trip - The ABBA and Eurovision Museum in Stockholm. Run, don’t walk: https://abbathemuseum.com/en/ 

Claire's favourite piece of Swedish Pop: https://tidal.com/track/3922178/u

And James': https://tidal.com/track/103017037/u

Can We Have Your Attention? is a podcast all about attention scarcity and the War for Attention. Join hosts Claire Coady and James Wickham as they dive into how your attention is attracted, tracked, traded, and manipulated in the modern attention economy. 

• Hosted by: Claire Coady & James Wickham
• Produced by: Phonogram https://www.phonogram.co.uk in conjunction with The Attention Practice https://www.theattentionpractice.com 
• Find out more on our website https://canwehaveyourattention.com 
• Got a story for us? Email us: [email protected] 

Like this episode? If you enjoyed this episode, please click subscribe. If you really liked it, please leave a rating - every rating helps this podcast reach more listeners like you.

How is your attention being exploited by people who deliberately make misinformation? Claire Coady and James Wickham are joined by Tom Garnett, the CEO of disinformation monitoring company Refute, to talk about misinformation and election interference. 

For more on Refute and the work they do to combat misinformation and disinformation, visit their website: https://refute.com/

Refute’s report on misinformation in the Romanian and Moldovan elections: https://tinyurl.com/3zwhehww

BBC News on the Moldovan parliamentary elections: https://tinyurl.com/dttukyvv

CNN on the Romanian presidential election: https://tinyurl.com/ye2935tz

Excellent reporting from the New York Times on how Generative AI is starting to, “wear down democracy”: https://tinyurl.com/4p9bczbf 

Can We Have Your Attention? is a podcast all about attention scarcity and the War for Attention. Join hosts Claire Coady and James Wickham as they dive into how your attention is attracted, tracked, traded, and manipulated in the modern attention economy. 

• Hosted by: Claire Coady & James Wickham
• Produced by: Phonogram https://www.phonogram.co.uk in conjunction with The Attention Practice https://www.theattentionpractice.com 
• Find out more on our website https://canwehaveyourattention.com 
• Got a story for us? Email us: [email protected]

Like this episode? If you enjoyed this episode, please click subscribe. If you really liked it, please leave a rating - every rating helps this podcast reach more listeners like you.

Do social media content creators make money? If so… how? Claire Coady and James Wickham discuss how content creators build their business: how they get started, build their audience, build businesses – or just make money. Why do they do it? What does it take to keep going? How do some make money on political content? And why haven’t we called them ‘influencers’?

Mentioned in this episode:

• Research from HMRC and NatCen on the social media content creators as businesses (from Nov 2025) https://tinyurl.com/5y6x3tvt 
• Market Oriented Disinformation Research by Carlos Diaz Ruiz - download for free via Taylor & Francis https://tinyurl.com/5dtub6wk 
• The Attention Economy and How Media Works - Karen Nelson-Field https://uk.bookshop.org/a/16591/9789811515392 
• Fascinating interview with two X users who made money during the US election - via BBC News https://tinyurl.com/4fw8jbyr 
• Example of a content creator who has found their niche (IG libbyythorntonn), and their audience (Claire) - what historic English monarchs would order from Spoons if they were alive today https://tinyurl.com/hkjm4dzc 

We would like to thank every content creator who has contributed to our anonymous survey so far. We plan to cover this topic in more detail in future episodes. If you would like to share your experience, you can do so anonymously here: https://forms.gle/iRLgew5C2dsYL63w9  

In memory of Ian Deeley, a talented broadcaster, technical wizard and most of all a fine friend. James’ tribute in full on his Substack: https://tinyurl.com/ykuss66d 

Can We Have Your Attention? is a podcast all about the War for Attention. Join hosts Claire Coady and James Wickham as they dive into how your attention is attracted, tracked, traded, and manipulated in the modern attention economy. 

• Hosted by: Claire Coady & James Wickham
• Produced by: Phonogram https://www.phonogram.co.uk in conjunction with The Attention Practice https://www.theattentionpractice.com 
• Find out more on our website https://canwehaveyourattention.com 
• Got a story for us? Email us: [email protected] 

Like this episode? If you enjoyed this episode, please click subscribe. If you really liked it, please leave a rating - every rating helps this podcast reach more listeners like you.

Claire Coady and James Wickham discuss the Department of Defence/Department of War rebrand and its fights with partners and suppliers. In September, Pete Hegseth suggested the U.S. military was being weakened by forces within - forces the Department would fight. How far will it go in that fight?

If the US public doesn't want a war overseas, then is the war on business as usual - and are suppliers exposed?

Plus, if political campaigning is harder in an overheated attention economy, and picking fights with business becomes more common, how can business prepare?

This episode recaps Claire’s Substack post ‘Weaponised Brands in the War for Attention’: https://open.substack.com/pub/attentionscarcity/p/weaponised-brands-in-the-war-for

The attention economy is harder to navigate - especially for political campaigns. More in ‘The Age of Attention Scarcity’: https://open.substack.com/pub/attentionscarcity/p/the-age-of-attention-scarcity

Also:

Gallup, 5 March: 1/3 of Americans say US defence isn’t strong enough https://news.gallup.com/poll/702767/americans-views-nation-global-image-power.aspx

Band names are a strong, identifiable “message” in a two-second world - System1 Group & TikTok: https://system1group.com/creative-effectiveness-tiktok 

Save your sanity and stay informed - introducing The Scroll, Scream, and Stop: https://www.linkedin.com/posts/clairecoady_were-back-on-the-latest-episode-of-can-activity-7449795220747137024-vR4I

On the history of the term “war fighters”: https://angrystaffofficer.com/2022/04/11/whats-in-a-name-the-problem-with-warfighter/ 

Can We Have Your Attention? is a podcast exploring the unseen forces that shape what we see, what we buy, and who we become. Hosted by Claire Coady and James Wickham, we dive into the mechanics of the Attention Economy to understand how value is created (and manipulated) in a distracted world.

Production Credits:

• Hosted by: Claire Coady & James Wickham
• Produced by: Phonogram https://www.phonogram.co.uk in conjunction with The Attention Practice https://www.theattentionpractice.com 
• Find out more on our website https://canwehaveyourattention.com 
• Got a story for us? Email us: [email protected] 

Enjoying the episode? If you found this conversation valuable, please follow us on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or your preferred player. Leaving a rating or review helps us break through the noise—and get the attention of more listeners like you.

Claire Coady and James Wickham discuss what happens when brands become news. From the Kit Kat heist to Nutella in space to McDonald’s CEO attempting to eat a burger like a human, Claire breaks down what happens in the marketing teams, while James picks up what happens in the newsrooms. What goes through a brand teams’ minds? What do journalists think? And when is it ever really news?

Mentioned in the show:

McDonald’s CEO Went Viral. Now He Has to Win Back Customers | WSJ https://youtu.be/rZxnFI2OW9k?si=au3QAkZUI4lu6tfx 

The Great KitKat Heist–Truckload of Formula 1 KitKats Stolen https://www.forbes.com/sites/peterlyon/2026/03/30/chocolate-grand-theft-auto-italys-missing-f1-kitkat-shipment/ 

Breakdown of KitKat’s market entry strategy in Japan, which has wildly influenced its brand and marketing strategy worldwide https://blog.btrax.com/kit-kats-market-entry/ 

F1’s Corporate Brand Strategy - how it sells itself as an entertainment brand

https://corp.formula1.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/01/Formula-1-Strategic-Plan011320.pdf 

If you like heists… Narconomics: How to run a Drug Cartel  https://uk.bookshop.org/a/16591/9781785030420 

And weird robbery trivia… how Tide detergent became the most popular target for thieves in the United States https://nymag.com/news/features/tide-detergent-drugs-2013-1/ 

And finally - on brand valuation (i.e. why F1 Kit Kats were stolen, but Kit Kat itself was all the public could register): https://online.hbs.edu/blog/post/what-is-brand-valuation 

Can We Have Your Attention? is a podcast exploring the unseen forces that shape what we see, what we buy, and who we become. Hosted by Claire Coady and James Wickham, we dive into the mechanics of the Attention Economy to understand how value is created (and manipulated) in a distracted world.

Production Credits:

• Hosted by: Claire Coady & James Wickham
• Produced by: Phonogram https://www.phonogram.co.uk in conjunction with The Attention Practice https://www.theattentionpractice.com 
• Find out more on our website https://canwehaveyourattention.com 
• Got a story for us? Email us: [email protected] 

Enjoying the episode? If you found this conversation valuable, please follow us on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or your preferred player. Leaving a rating or review helps us break through the noise—and get the attention of more listeners like you.