Ann Davison

Zombie Stunt Stands Out

This week my Innovation in Advocacy award goes to fans of urban libraries.  Admittedly partial to their cause, what really captured my attention is the use of a pop culture icon to grab attention  - zombies.

Zombies officially entered the American conscious in 1964 when George Romero directed Night of the Living Dead, a cult classic horror film where mindless corpses with a hunger for human flesh, and particularly human brains, attack a local farm community.  

By 2011 zombies had become such popular characters in movies, books, video games, music and art that even government agencies like the Centers for Disease Control found them an ideal agent for grabbing public attention.  

But the move by a group of activists outraged over cuts in funding for public libraries showed particular creativity in embracing zombie mania.  After several traditional read-ins at the Brooklyn Public and a shared mass hug around the iconic New York Public Library, the group expanded its bag of advocacy tricks – marching a horde of librarians masquerading as zombies across the Brooklyn Bridge.  The obvious message:  people who don’t have books are left craving for brains. 

Not only was this a great use of a popular icon, but the group also made sure to surround their event with a targeted media strategy.  As Christian Zabriskie, the founder of Urban Libraries Unite, blogged on Huffington post:

Modern activism is story driven. It's not enough to get friends together and hold signs, you have to have a hook to get into people's heads and stay there. 50 zombie librarians lurching over the Brooklyn Bridge is very picturesque, but without a story it is just a bunch of adults dressing up for Halloween and holding signs. It became a narrative when we sent out a press release from the perspective of the city's resident zombies protesting a dangerous drop in their primary foodstuff, brains. 

Well said.  An advocacy-driven stunt, no matter how creative, is only as effective as the strategic communications campaign that it accompanies.  It’s not enough just to get the attention of people and policy-makers.  An effective advocacy action must include a message that is clear and compelling. 

 

Campaigning Towards Social Media Victory

Go mobile or go home.  That’s the advice I keep repeating to organizations planning to maximize the business and reputation opportunities available at the 2012 political conventions.  But the deeper question for political watchers is the impact social media will have on the actual November election.

In a recent Wall Street Journal article on the topic, Andy Kessler chronicled the evolution of media influences in campaigns from the first televised debate between Nixon and JFK in 1952 to the “make your own Obama commercial” craze that swept YouTube in 2008.   Today’s candidates are in a constant race not only to top their competition in the quarterly financial filings but in the daily tally of Facebook fans and Twitter followers. 

But as Kessler notes, when it comes to social media influence in campaigns, the true power lies in quality over quantity.  “Those with social media influence are most likely to help campaigns convert interest into votes,” Kessler writes.  

Converting interest to action is the holy grail of advocacy and political campaigns.  And for that to happen, the message must do much more than simply raise awareness.  Target audiences (eligible and likely to vote citizens, in the case of elections) must feel the message being received is relevant, empowering and urgent.  An individual’s beliefs and attitudes along with intentions are the best predictors of behavior.  And the quality of the messenger is an important link in that equation.

So, the question in the 2012 elections with regard to social media impacts may not be about how many friends of fans Obama or Fill-in-the-Blank Presidential Nominee may be able to attract – but who are the individuals putting up those virtual yard signs in front of their electronic house, and what do they say.  

 

Black Friday Undercuts Sustainable Economy

Though nearly 11 months out, the Black Friday which precedes the Presidential election is a sign of the strength or weakness of the incumbent. Sales figures are a measure of consumer confidence, closely tracked and reported by financial, consumer and political media.  What's the verdict for Obama?

Early reports in the wee morning hours were dim, but as the morning sun began to rise, news reports looked a bit more hopeful.  While the typical stories of shoppers gone mad dominated the online headlines, the below the fold story of an expected 10% increase in sales of 2010 are a good sign for the White House. The final analysis will more likely show single digit improvements.  One could predict a similar storyline next November 6th, though with much tighter margins.

The measure of consumer spending as a sign of an improved economy is, however, an unfortunate indicator.  At at time when our nation is deep and debt, as are our citizens, do we really need to scramble on top of one another to grab the latest game console like savages?  Spending has become synonymous with "good economy."  But a sustainable economy should emphasize rationale spending and even some serious savings.  

Sure, one can argue that Black Friday is in fact about savings, and I'll buy that to a point.  But just once, I'd love to see a presidential candidate come out on Thanksgiving and encourage everyone to "sleep-in" the next day, as opposed to racing to the big box stores fighting for parking spots and a place in line.  Get some real exercise (not the kind where you run down the aisles) to shake off the extra calories heaped on during the holidays; spend time with family discussing how we can do more with less as a society - because that is the reality we live in. 

Instead of waiting on a presidential candidate to emerge with all the solutions, we must take personal responsibility for our health, our pocket books, our neighborhoods and our future.  My husband says, gleefully, I sound like a Republican.  But I call this Sound Citizenship  - something neither of the parties has yet grasped.