This Brave Nation

June 9, 2008

Dear Reader,

Permit me a personal moment. Like you, I often wonder why I do what I do. And because I’ve done it for so long, I sometimes wonder whether it all was worth it. Well, make no mistake. It was and is. Especially when the reasons are so graphically and emotionally recorded on film. Let me explain.

Last night I watched — online — the second episode in a remarkable series co-produced by The Nation magazine and Brave New Foundation. The site where you’ll find all this is This Brave Nation. At a time when nearly everyone’s blaming the internet for sapping civic spirit and the desire to learn, rather than play games, on the part of today’s young folks, here is a remarkable counter argument.

This Brave Nation, in the words of The Nation editors, "brings together the most intellligent, passionate and creative voices of one generation with the activists, journalists and artists of the next to dialogue on loves, lives, politics and history."

Here at The Agitator we write a lot about techniques, trends, accountability and other important stuff for non-profit CEOs, comms people and fundraisers. But, at the end of the day our intention is only to offer the insight and advice necessary to support missions and content. And, regardless of whether you’re a die-hard leftie like me or some other form of zealot (you’re forgiven in advance), here’s a classic example.

Print married with film. Film and print married with the internet. Internet married with text, audio and video. Text, audio and video married with ACTION.You don’t need a user’s manual to get the beauty of all this integration. Beginning on June 1 the first episode of a five part video series — eventually to be produced in a DVD boxed set — aired.

Regardless of your ideology — or maybe especially because of your ideology — I urge you to watch ‘em all. Last night’s episode was a moving interchange between singer-songwriter-activist Bonnie Raitt and union organizer-humanitarian-feminist par excellence Delores Huerta.

For the next generation — today’s 18 to 35 year olds– it’s important to understand the roots and motivation of modern social change and why the agitators and sparkplugs behind that change do what they do. You’ll find it here, especially in the conversation between Bonnie Raitt and Delores Huerta. Not only is their colloquy of how they got into the movements and what drove them emotionally moving; their explanations will surely attract the next generation.

 

And to make sure there’s an opportunity, This Brave Nation is sponsoring a contest to name today’s future movement leaders — limited only by age. Past 30 you’re out of luck. Featured in these five episodes are Carl Pope longtime leader of the Sierra Club, Van Jones, founder of the Ella Baker Center, of course Delores Huerta and Bonnie Raitt, activist and folk singer Pete Seeger, along with environmental justice organizer Majora Carter, ACLU executive director Anthony Romero along with teenage peace activist Ava Lowery, and activist/politician Tom Hayden along with Nation columnist Naomi Klein.

Whoever at The Nation or Brave New Films came up with this concept, so beautifully executed, to inspire us all, you deserve a raise!!!!

Roger

Posted by rcraver | Filed Under Don't Miss these Posts, You Deserve a Raise, communications, demographic trends, innovation, issue fundraising, latinos, online advocacy | 1 Comment 

“Must” Weekend Reading From Pew

March 17, 2007

Pew's Project for Excellence in Journalism has just released State of the American News Media, 2007: Mainstream Media Go Niche.

If news coverage matters to your nonprofit, and your role involves scratching for some, then you should read this report … or you oughta be fired.

How the news biz is struggling to remain viable and relevant affects how journalists approach coverage in various media … and therefore how you can best approach them. Here are some observations from the report:

“All news organizations are becoming more niche players, basing their appeal less on how they cover the news and more on what they cover.”

“Technology is redefining the role of the citizen — endowing the individual with more responsibility and command over how he or she consumes information — and that new role is only beginning to be understood.”

“Journalism is becoming a smaller part of people's information mix. The press is no longer gatekeeper over what the public knows.” [Interestingly, the report refers to “search” as a kind of journalism, and includes an important section on public attitudes toward the news media.]

“Some of the most interesting experiments in new journalism continue to come from outside the profession — sites such as Global Voices, which mixes approved volunteer “reporters” from around the world with professional editors.”

“A growing pattern has news outlets, programs and journalists offering up solutions, crusades, certainty and the impression of putting all the blur of information in clear order for people. The tone may be just as extreme as before, but now the other side is not given equal play. In a sense, the debate in many venues is settled — at least for the host.”

“Every media sector except two is now losing popularity. Even the number of people who go online for news — or anything else — has stopped growing. Only the ethnic press is up.”

And that leads us to another new report from Pew, Latinos Online. Of course, don't bother reading this one if the online presence of the fasting growing ethnic population in America is unimportant to your organization.

BTW, Mi Gente, with 2.7 million Latino members, just made the top twenty list of social networking sites, coming in 18th in traffic. Here's our take.

Roger & Tom

Posted by admin | Filed Under You Oughta Be Fired, communications, latinos, new media | Leave a Comment 

42 Million And Counting

October 1, 2006

Earlier we reported that Hispanic Heritage Month is underway, and provided a potpourri of pertinent data on our U.S. Hispanic population for fundraisers and communicators.

Here's a special new compilation of U.S. Census data on Hispanics put together by the Pew Hispanic Center.

We're going to keep throwing this data at you, because you need to figure out how this growing segment of America fits into your marketing plans. Do Latinos know about your issue? Do they care about it? Should they? If so, what are you going to do about engaging them?

We're mindful of using the terms “they” and “them.” We're two white guys, and we see mostly guys and gals of our color running the scores and scores of national nonprofits we encounter. So until nonprofit staffs truly diversify, “you” need to figure out how “they” fit into “your” equation. Politicians certainly are, and not just in the traditional “big five” Hispanic population states.

Posted by admin | Filed Under Hot Research, demographic trends, latinos | Leave a Comment