As a member of Generation Y I thought that I was very tech savvy, but so far have had a fast learning curve on just how media spreads in these times.
Coming from the land the biggest turning point was for me watching the Live Animal Export Debate unfold before me. I have never seen something of that magnitude gain so much momentum so fast. Everywhere I turned there were posts from Animal activists and concerned citizens everywhere, no longer a domain of writing an incensed letter to the editor of the local paper, these messages flooded the internet, and nowhere larger than twitter and Facebook. On twitter alone the phrase "Ban Live Export" became a trending phrase almost instantaneously after the screening of the controversial Four Corners documentary, and there it stayed trending for at least two days.
Yet nowhere in this social media storm of hate and frustration did I see a message of support for our Aussie farmers or even a statement from them explaining their side of the story. It wasn't until several days later that I finally saw an invite on Facebook for a Save Live Export petition and links to a page on the internet.
If this one instance has taught us anything is that we as producers were on the back foot trying to get our message out there. No longer can we simply rely on print media to get our message across, when with the click of a mouse a story can be distributed throughout the world.
After watching the story on the ABC this Sunday gone I have realized that the need for us to tell our story we need to get out there and not just rely on others. We need to be "Proagtive" in our discussions to get our message out there so that the public know and understand both sides of the story.
For further information on the Landline Story check out this link:
http://www.abc.net.au/landline/content/2010/s3293020.htm
Great job with starting your blog! I'm looking forward to reading more of your posts. Keep up the good work.
ReplyDeleteSo true about how fast things spread. Unfortunately those doing the spreading are not necessarily properly informed and many of those reading have no idea about the other side of the story.
ReplyDeleteI also was shocked at how fast the live export matter got out of hand. The thing people forgot is that anything that affects the rural sector on that big a scale is that eventually it is going to affect them on a personal level whether that be price hikes in produce or lack of produce. So many cannot see how big a part of their lives farmers are until something goes wrong like weather extremes or silly bureaucrat decisions. Once things are patched up they are all quite happy to put rural problems out of their minds and concentrate on the next big thing.