Our PMs’ fave words
What’s in a word? John Key was fond of ‘‘rugby’’, Bill English liked continue, while Jacinda Ardern favours change.
On Monday, Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern passed a small but significant landmark, beating predecessor English’s 319 days in office.
But how has her leadership differed in tone from Key and English?
An analysis of all the official speeches given by the three prime ministers during their first 319 days in office reveals their outlook on the world through the words they use and avoid.
Key was by far the most prolific public speaker, according to speeches archived on the Beehive website. He gave 30 speeches in his first 319 days in office, compared with seven from English and 17 from Ardern. He spoke about 70,000 words in public speeches, compared with 40,000 for Ardern and 18,000 for English. Analysis of those words showed Key said rugby 23 times – compared with three for Ardern – was the only PM to use the word sexy in a speech, and was perhaps the most patriotic, saying New Zealand at a greater rate than his successors. Ardern said ‘‘child poverty’’ 28 times – compared with once for Key and never for English – was the only PM to use the word beer, and used te reo words at nearly four times the rate of her predecessors.
English used the word continue 61 times in his seven speeches, was the only PM to use the word God, and used the phrase ‘‘climate change’’ once.
Counting the most popular words, excluding the short common ones, in the leader’s speeches can also be revealing.
English said work 62 times, while Key said economic 243 times, and Ardern said change 120 times.
Key used the words young people, tourism, growth and business at a much higher rate than his successors, while English said public services, family violence and continue at a higher rate, and Ardern favoured climate change, Pacific and education.
The speeches also give a small glimpse into the state of the prime ministerial ego. Ardern said I most often, with the word making up just over 1 per cent of all her speeches.
Key and English were both just under 1 per cent.
The analysis also gives an insight into the feelgood factor, with Key using the word love twice over his 30 speeches, English avoiding it altogether, and Ardern using it four times in 17 speeches.
But, despite the different word choices, all three prime ministers spoke in a similar tone.
Sentiment analysis software, which can classify text as positive or negative in tone, shows all three leaders were neutral in their use of language. Online analysis tools also show all three leaders spoke at the level of an American 12th grader, the final year of compulsory education where pupils are between 17 and 18 years old. But English stood out for his use of more meaningful and informative words than Key and Ardern. He used meaningful words at twice the rate of Key.