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Two smiley faces: Episode one

How emojis have come to define us, and what they tell us about global communication.

The emoji, invented in Japan in the 1990s, and now standardised on every device and platform we have, has become a new type of global communication. Whether you love them or hate them, they stir up surprisingly strong feelings and the fight for representation on the emoji keyboard can get very heated. In this first episode, we explore how for many of us, these cute symbols have become a natural part of our daily digital lives. We also meet two emoji lovers as they prepare to take on Silicon Valley and try to have their longed-for emoji approved. The ±«Óãtv's Vivienne Nunis and Sarah Treanor will be your global emoji guides through this six-part series, and explain why the tiny pictures can lead to big emotions.

Available now

23 minutes

Last on

Mon 5 Jul 2021 02:06GMT

Broadcasts

  • Sun 4 Jul 2021 09:06GMT
  • Sun 4 Jul 2021 21:06GMT
  • Mon 5 Jul 2021 02:06GMT