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The Poetry of Instagram

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04/03/2018

BBC Radio 4 - The Poetry of Instagram

What does the success of Rupi Kaur and the Instagram poets mean for readers and writers?

Poets writing on Instagram have amassed millions of followers. How do readers react to their writing, especially the work of Rupi Kaur, and what does the medium mean for poetry?

Poets writing on the social media platform 'Instagram' have amassed millions of followers, and have a global audience that responds to their work instantaneously. In this programme we explore the way readers all over the world react to the work of Rupi Kaur, one of the best known of these poets, and ask how 'Instagram' itself is influencing the form and style of poems (including the haiku of Johnathan Rice, who satirises the way we increasingly live through social media). Rupi Kaur and Johnathan Rice are amongst the 'Instagram Poets' who are now so popular they have published books. Kaur's latest is 'the sun and her flowers' (Simon and Schuster), whilst Rice's is 'Farewell my Dudes: 69 Dystopian Haikus' (Hat and Beard Press). 

Music was specially composed for this documentary by Scanner, a musician who is interested in the relationship between technology and speech. He has previously worked on projects with artists including Bryan Ferry, Wayne MacGregor, Michael Nyman, Steve McQueen, and Laurie Anderson. 

Producer: Faith Lawrence 
Presenter: Faith Lawrence
Composer: Scanner
Studio Manager: Sue Stonestreet.

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