TikTok and Netflix Blamed for Decline of Traditional British Dialects

According to a recent report, the unique regional accents of England are under threat as children increasingly adopt American phrasing and accents from their digital media consumption. The author, Nicola Chester, who previously worked as a school librarian, has observed this trend firsthand with her students.

Chester explains that while accents and dialects should be a source of pride, they are now "being squeezed from another direction altogether" - the influence of TikTok, Netflix, Disney, and other American-dominated digital platforms. This is leading to the decline of traditional regional accents like Cockney and Received Pronunciation, which are being replaced by a more homogenized "Multicultural London English" among young Britons.

The report's findings align with a 2016 study that predicted regional accents and phrases could disappear within 50 years due to increased interaction with technology and exposure to American English. Some voice assistants in the UK even struggle to recognize certain regional terms, further accelerating this linguistic shift. As populations become more mobile and connected through the internet and social media, the natural evolution of accents and dialects appears inevitable, posing a threat to the diversity of the English language across the UK.