The gloves are off as the war of words between Russell Brand and The Sun newspaper continues to be played out in the media. But as technology has changed the way we consume content, whose media is winning?

The Sun is claiming that because the comedian can afford to rent in a trendy part of London, he isn’t fit to make comments about the lack of affordable homes for the working class. The newspaper dedicated 2 front pages in 1 week to the man from Essex in December. The first of those labeled him a ‘hypocrite’ for the reasons mentioned above. The second, a damning indictment stating ‘The Nation Speaks’ – suggesting the public is on the side of the tabloid as 68% of people say he is a hypocrite, and 64% say he’s not funny.

Like many, I’ve been following this story in great detail. Whether indeed it is one man attempting to bring down a spiteful publication with a clear agenda, or a national institution just doing their job and asking the difficult questions, is for you to decide. What I am interested in is – as the headline declared – whether the nation has truly spoken?

So let’s give you some figures. In terms of publishing, The Sun’s circulation is 1.9 million people, whereas Russell Brand’s last book ‘Revolution’ has so far sold roughly 50,000 copies. But on social media, Russell has 8.6 million followers, 13x more than The Sun’s 655,000 as well as 2.9 million Facebook users, almost doubling the newspapers 1.7. Regarding regular viewers, the comedian has nearly 100x more subscribers to his channel where he hosts The Trews, than The Sun’s equivalent.

In the aftermath of the second front page ‘The Nation Speaks’ coming to press, a tidal wave of people immediately took to Twitter to weigh in and mock The Sun’s stance that ‘my opinion has been decided for me’. The hashtag #TheSunLogic began trending and gained an enormous amount of attention from public figures speaking out over a range of issues from politics to wealth that the paper themselves had been guilty of hypocrisy. So while the newspaper has a greater circulation with regards to print media, the huge numbers in favour of Russell in the online world, illustrate just how far we’ve come in terms of new media’s ability to influence a debate.

Newspapers’ popularity has dropped significantly in recent years for a number of reasons. In a bygone era, publishing was every business’s second business. Today, it’s every person’s second business. But print media doesn’t have to die, what it has to do is adapt and evolve in to something else, something relevant. You don’t have to be a media mogul to understand why tabloids feed on this kind of sensationalist narrative. Yet there attacks simply aren’t connecting in the way they used to because of platforms such as Twitter that undermine these transparent campaigns of hate.

Thanks to social media, the landscape has shifted and become more democratised. The goal posts have moved because where once upon a time there were only a few opinions being heard, now, everybody is a publisher. For the kids who are having to grow up with The Sun – like I have – the straight, rule abiding world of parents and papers bemoaning the antics of a dynamic, anti-establishment comedian is exactly the kind of publicity Brand's celebrity feeds off. It’s fuelling the fire, and this is taking place online, not in print. By attacking and rubbishing a popular youth figure the paper is inadvertently alienating many potential future readers.

Tabloids are now viewed as the guy who may well have been around for a few years, but is now struggling to keep up with a fast-paced modern society. Alternatively, whether you love him or loathe him, when Russell Brand speaks, thousands listen and engage, which are aided by his devotion to continually publishing new content on social media platforms. From a marketing perspective, Brand really is nailing it. The conversation is both ways and his audience feels connected and appreciated, which is something traditional newspapers are struggling to master. So this poses the question; does the Sun really speak to more people than Russell Brand?

Photo Source: By English: Eva Rinaldi Celebrity and Live Music Photographer (Flickr) [CC-BY-SA-2.0], via Wikimedia Commons