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Messages and Media: Educating and Persuading

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Messages and Media: Educating and Persuading Messages and Media: 13 Educating and Persuading Communication is central to effective advo- Why Media Advocacy? cacy. First, good interpersonal communication is vital inside the advocacy effort itself — Media advocacy is important to: among colleagues, leaders, constituents, • get on the political agenda; allies, etc. Second, we need communication • make your issue visible and credible in strategies to reach, educate, and persuade policy debate; external audiences, from policymakers to • inform the public about your issue and communities. proposed solution; In this chapter, we cover the following areas in • recruit allies; media advocacy and education strategies: • change public attitudes and behavior; • influence decisionmakers and opinion Message development and delivery leaders; This section focuses on identifying and know- • shape policies, programs and the conduct ing the audience you want to reach and tailor- of public and private agencies; ing your message accordingly. We also dis- cuss the pros and cons of different ways to • raise money for your cause. deliver your message. In later chapters, we give more examples of message delivery as it A media advocacy plan spells out: relates to outreach, mobilization, lobbying, and • What message you want to convey. negotiation. • Who you want to reach with the message. • How you will reach this audience. Mass media advocacy • We offer tips and strategies to engage and How you will utilize each type of media. utilize mass media that reach large numbers of • How this will boost your overall advocacy people (newspaper, radio, TV, etc.). We also effort. discuss some of the challenges of working • How you will time your media effort to with both private and publicly-owned media complement your other strategies. where the owners’ interests may conflict with • How you will measure success. your advocacy goals. DVOCACY Like all aspects of advocacy, media advocacy A Alternative media for outreach and educa- requires clear goals and carefully planned OING tion D strategies. We discuss and give examples of strategies for engaging your audiences in dialogue and education. Such community-based and popular Message Development media use theater, song, workshops and other direct forms of communication. Your advocacy message is what you choose to say about your issue, its solution and who you are. To develop a message, you will need information to back up the arguments you use. The Action Guide for Advocacy and Citizen Participation 231 13 Messages and Media: Educating and Persuading The following are some basic principles of Analysis help you identify key stakeholders in message development. Not all of these prin- relation to your issue. Your “audiences” are ciples are universal. For example, if the media these same stakeholders, as well as potential is government-owned, some principles may sympathizers. When you develop your mes- not apply. Some principles depend on whether sages, you can refer back to this analysis, but you are using the mass media or alternative you may also need to sharpen your profile of media. In general, to develop an effective each audience. message, it is important to: 1. Know your audience. The box below shows different categories of potential audiences with a range of interests 2. Know your political environment and and perspectives. The particulars of your issue moment (controversies, big issues, will direct you to the specific type of person or fears, and what is considered left, right organization you want to engage. For example, and center). if your issue has to do with land rights for poor 3. Keep your message simple and brief. women and men, your audiences will be those 4. Use real life stories and quotes. who have influence and interest in land issues. 5. Use precise, powerful language and In this case, your audiences might be grouped active verbs. according to locale of operations and include: 6. Use clear facts and numbers creatively. • Local Level: your main constituents -- peasant and farmer’s associations as well 7. Adapt the message to the medium. as large and small-scale farmers, exten- 8. Allow your audience to reach their own sion and other agricultural service workers. conclusions. • National Level: associations concerned 9. Encourage audiences to take action. with agro-business, agricultural develop- 10. Present a possible solution. ment, and the environment; journalists covering development and agriculture; 1. Know your audience. politicians representing rural constituen- Find out who cares – or could be persuaded to cies; decisionmakers with influence over care – about your issue. In chapter 12, the land and agriculture, such as the Ministers Power Map, the SWOT and the Forcefield and top officials in Agriculture, Justice, Potential Audiences Local and National International • Decisionmakers - politicians and policymakers • Bilaterals and Multilaterals (the World • Opinion leaders Bank, etc.) • Donors • Donors • Journalists • NGOs • • NGOs Corporations • Issue-specific researchers and professionals • UN Agencies • Trade unions • Constituents • Private sector • The general public 232 The Action Guide for Advocacy and Citizen Participation Messages and Media: Educating and Persuading 13 Information/Analysis Position Argument Message Using solid information and analysis, groups develop their position on an issue, create compelling arguments, and design a message that conveys all of this in a nutshell. Trade and Finance; agricultural profession- less acceptable. Often it helps to link your als; related academics; and concerned message to another issue that has public citizens. attention. Comparisons with other well-known • International Level: institutions shaping problems help audiences understand the trade and agricultural policy, like the World seriousness of your issue. Trade Organization, the World Bank and the International Monetary Fund; NGOs con- For example, after the US government found cerned about globalization and food; influ- two Chilean grapes with cyanide on them, it ential donors. stopped all imports of Chilean fruit. Tobacco control advocates used this incident to com- Find out what they know, their concerns, their pare the much larger amount of cyanide in one values and priorities, and what kind of lan- cigarette with that in several bushels of tainted 1 guage they use. To capture the attention of an grapes. audience, you need to know their interests, their situation and their vocabulary. This in- 3. Keep the message simple and brief. volves listening to their ideas and concerns. Make sure the information can be easily under- For some audiences – like citizens – you may stood by someone who does not know the need a focus group (see chapter 8). For opin- subject. Jargon is confusing and should be ion leaders and decisionmakers, their back- avoided. Even common terms like “sustainable ground and positions on issues are usually development” and “civil society” are obscure to publicly available. Study media stories and most people. existing research on social and political issues to find out more about your audience. (See Getting the Message Right: Using Formative Research, Polling and Focus Group Insights on the Cheap, The Advocacy Institute, Wash- ington, DC, 1998.) DVOCACY 2. Know your political environment and A moment. OING Many contextual factors will shape your mes- D sage. These include the level of political open- 4. Use real life stories and quotes. ness and public attitudes about controversy. In Political debates are often reduced to facts and countries emerging from conflict or economic sweeping social analysis that may not reach crises, messages that express hope may work most audiences, even policymakers. The well. When a government is broadly under fire, human element makes a problem real. Quotes it may be more acceptable to criticize explicitly. and personal stories bring to life the challenges In a time of war, critical messages become of a problem in a way that general explanations cannot. The Action Guide for Advocacy and Citizen Participation 233 13 Messages and Media: Educating and Persuading 5. Use precise, powerful language and The answers to these questions require cred- active verbs. ible research from reliable sources. Although Advocacy groups often use language that may some issues require new research, usually not work with all audiences. For example, the there is a lot of information already available. general public message of an African women’s What you will add is a new way of understand- advocacy campaign to reform inheritance laws ing the facts and figures in line with your was “Put an end to property-grabbing. Support advocacy objectives. women’s equal rights to inherit.” The message was then tailored for rural women, suggesting 7. Adapt the message to the medium. a concrete action and using an image showing Each medium has its own possibilities and the need to be vigilant: “End property-grabbing: limitations. For example, radio relies on Write a will and cry with one eye open.” sounds. So you should use different voices, backgrounds sounds and music to add to 6. Use clear facts and numbers creatively. make your message compelling. For television, Good information boosts the clout of any make full use of the visual element and reduce advocacy. But the facts you choose and how written and spoken information. For street you present them is important. The last chapter theater, engage the audience by asking ques- discussed some of the information needed for tions, inviting responses, speaking to individu- advocacy planning. That same information can als and making people laugh. be used for your media strategy. Concretely: What is the problem/issue? What are the 8. Allow the audience to reach their own causes? Who is directly affected and how? understanding. What are the financial and social costs? Who’s Provide the basic details and allow the audi- to blame? What is the solution, and what can a ence to develop their own understanding of the citizen or policymaker do to help? issue. Too much explanation appears dogmatic. Longer explanations are useful once you have your audience’s attention. Messages that reach citizens are...
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