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Struggles of newspapers serving Australian rural communities now
We are adding to the ACDC collection a 2023 Sustainability journal article. It sketches “a paradoxical picture of a revival of rural and regional journalism” in Australia. Authors used a range of primary and secondary data sources to track causes, scale, responses, and impact of what they described as a global crisis in print journalism. Their findings reveal a mixture of innovation, hope, uncertainty, and risk.
You can read the research report by open access here.
You can also retrieve it using a title search: “Out of print: What the pandemic-era newspaper crisis…”
Nonprofit models for rural news organizations
We also are adding to the ACDC collection an article by Al Cross about this topic from the 2022 National Summit on Journalism in Rural America at the University of Kentucky. He summarized the features of nonprofit models and cited comments from members of a discussion panel.
“We see nonprofit local news…as a real bright spot,” said a panelist from the American Journalism Project, which makes grants, partners with communities, and coaches leaders. Another panelist explained that publishers who are interested in the nonprofit model can also explore it with the help of the Institute for Nonprofit News.
You can read the report by open access here.
“Adoption of improved rice varieties in the Global South”
That title introduced a recent Rice Science article in which authors reviewed adoption of improved rice varieties in the Global South since the 1960s. They sought to understand why the adoption of new varieties has remained relatively low.
Findings synthesized from 99 studies suggested that extensively-studied variables (farm size, location, education, information access, and farm location) “are not necessarily the most important determinants of adoption.” Authors advised “shifting away from predominant static analysis by capturing the dynamics of the adoption process and considering the potential biases in analyses.”
You can read the 43-page article by open access here.
Keys to communicating about food waste in different cultural settings
We are adding to the ACDC collection some 2018 research findings that may help communicators reduce food waste in different cultural environments. Michigan State University doctoral candidate Rain Wuyu Liu learned that residents of China and the United States reacted differently to mass and social media campaigns involving food waste.
“While people from both countries share similar attitudes about food waste prevention, social norms and cultural orientations influence the type of communication that works best for getting the message across about health and environmental issues.”
You can read the research summary here.
How swine industry stakeholders view precision livestock farming
“Despite the rapid proliferation of precision livestock farming (PLF) technologies, on-farm adoption has been slow,” a research team reported earlier this year in Frontiers in Animal Science. So members sought the views and concerns of stakeholders in the U.S. swine industry. They used semi-structured online interviews among influential on-farm stakeholders such as swine farmers, veterinarians, and breeders. They also interviewed off-farm stakeholders from the government, food processing and retail companies, and animal welfare certification organizations.
Findings revealed a high level of PLF technology awareness among most of the stakeholders. Some cited benefits included improved specificity in decision making among swine producers, increased efficiency of labor and feed, as well as improved animal care and health. Some limitations and concerns included poor internet connectivity, need to modify existing farm buildings and infrastructure, and issues of data ownership, privacy, and influence on human-animal relationships.
You can read the article by open access here.
Or search on title: “Precision livestock farming: a qualitative exploration…”
Communicator events approaching
Here are event plans you may find helpful, with contact information you can use for details. We welcome suggestions or revisions for this calendar.
June 4-6, 2023
“Putting the Spotlight on Communications.” 2023 Institute of the Cooperative Communicators Association (CCA) in Portland, Maine.
Information: cca@communicators.coop
June 11-13, 2023
Conference of the Association for Communication Excellence (ACE) in Ashville, North Carolina.
Information: https://aceweb.org/2023conference
June 13-15, 2023
Annual meeting of the Agricultural Relations Council (ARC) in Des Moines, Iowa.
Information: https://agrelationscouncil.org
June 22-24, 2023
“The ever-changing media landscape.” Annual conference of American Horse Publications (AHP) in Phoenix-Tempe, Arizona.
Information: https://americanhorsepubs.org/2023-ahp-meet-at-the-mesa-conference
September 10-13, 2023
Annual general meeting of the European Network of Agricultural Journalists (ENAJ) in St. Malo, France.
Information: https://enaj.eu
How farmers stay in business
We close this issue of ACDC News with a communications insight from Jan Johnson, President of Millennium Research, in a recent issue of AgriMarketing Update:
Q: “You know what keeps farmers in business?”
A: “A good BS detector. Without this, they may as well be just babes in the
woods, ripe to be taken by every salesperson who comes down the road.”
Best regards and wishes
ACDC is a deep and open resource for you, so please feel free to invite our help as you search for information, local to global. You are welcome to follow us on Twitter @ACDCUIUC. And please suggest (or send) agricultural communications documents we might add to this unique and valued international collection. We welcome them in hard copy (sent to Ag Comm Documentation Center, 510 ACES Library, 1101 S. Goodwin Avenue, University of Illinois, Urbana, IL 61801) – or in electronic format sent to acdc@library.illinois.edu