Sources of mistrust – consumers, media and the food industry.
An article in the British Medical Bulletin identifies nearly a dozen causes of “the current air of mistrust that seems to exist between the media, the food industry and the consumer.” Here are some of the causes cited, including several that have not been aired prominently:
• More efforts to modulate consumers’ perceptions of risk.
• Increased environmental awareness in the industrialized world.
• New bacteria emerging, others adapting to modern food production practices.
• Less ability of consumers to control the safety of their own food.
• Internationalizing food supply with accompanying increase in food safety problems.
• Proliferation and globalization of media.
Reference: The relationship between the media.
Information about online access via: http://gateway.ut.ovid.com/gw2/ovidweb.cgi
Can publishers really afford to be ethical?
“In my case, I believe yes,” the World President of the International Federation of Agricultural Journalists (IFAJ) told those attending the Agricultural Media Summit in Milwaukee, Wisconsin USA, early this month. IFAJ President David Markey owns and manages IFP Publishing, based in Dublin, Ireland. It publishes more than 30 periodicals that serve agriculture and other industries.
Sharing some of his experiences and perspectives, he concluded: “…at the end of the day in business, your good name and the good name of your staff and company is all you have. … it’s a fine line we walk and at the end of the day we are only human. Ethics, morals, principles, integrity – whatever you choose to call them, should be the control standards and judgement basics of our industry.”
Reference: Can publishers really afford to be ethical?
Posted online in the “Professional Development” page of: http://www.ifaj.org
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Photography on the frontier.
If rural photography interests you, we would mention a recent book by Paul Clee, Photography and the making of the American West. Photography emerged, as a new information technology, at about the same time as the American West was being explored and settled. In this book, the author “looks at the early history of photography in the United States, the photographers who recorded life on the frontier, and how their vision and artistry shaped public opinion about the West.”
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Recent books about food and conservation issues.
These three newly added books include information about the communication aspects of food safety and natural resource management:
- Fran Hawthorne, Inside the FDA: the business and politics behind the drugs we take and the food we eat. 2005. Includes aspects such as food advertising methods and regulations, labeling, scandals and political pressures.
- Henry I. Miller and Gregory Conko, The frankenfood myth: how protest and politics threaten the biotech revolution. 2004. Includes topics such as misconceptions about biotechnology, media responsibilities, food labeling and interest group activities.
- Rachel White Scheuring, Shapers of the great debate on conservation: a biographical dictionary. 2004. Includes discussions of media coverage, public perceptions, conflict, misinformation, publicity campaigns and other communication aspects.
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What is local rural radio these days?
James O’Brien raised that question in a Rural Society article from the Centre for Rural Social Research, Charles Sturt University, Wagga Wagga, Australia. “A single press of a button can now allow a radio announcer in Sydney – who has never been to Wagga – to pass comment about the local weather. That button can allow them to tell you what is on at your local cinema or hotel.”
The question – not unique to Australia – prompted O’Brien to call for a new localism based on context for local matters. “If more networked programs means the local staff can concentrate on stories and issues that really are important locally, then we will be winners. Unfortunately, the quality of localism may well decline, as stations, under the pressure of increased competition, fail to consolidate their strengths and take the easy options.”
Reference: Life at the outpost.
Posted at: http://www.csu.edu.au/research/crsr/ruralsoc/v2n4p17.htm
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Welcome to Carolyn Sanford
This month as new graduate assistant in the Agricultural Communications Documentation Center. A candidate in the Graduate School of Library and Information Science, Carolyn brings to the Center valuable experience and interest in communications, teaching and librarianship. Her previous degrees involved journalism (BA, University of Missouri) and international affairs (MA, Washington University).
Carolyn has professional experience in media relations, writing, editing, retail sales and elementary school teaching. In 1997 she received the Master Communicator Award from the International Association of Business Communicators (Central Illinois Chapter). We look forward to working with her and know she will add to the progress and service of the Center.
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Communicator activities approaching.
September 7-10, 2005
Annual conference of the Association of Food Journalists in San Francisco, California.
Information: http://www.afjonline.comSeptember 8-10, 2005
48th annual workshop of the National Market News Association in Atlanta, Georgia.
Information: http://www.ams.usda.gov/nmnaSeptember 22-24, 2005
50th anniversary meeting of the Canadian Farm Writers’ Federation in Lloydminster, Alberta, Canada.
Information: http://www.cfwf.caSeptember 28-October 2, 2005
Annual conference of the Society of Environmental Journalists in Austin, Texas.
Information: http://www.sej.org/confer/index1.htmOctober 1, 2005
Deadline for papers to be considered for presentation at the Agricultural Communications Section of the 2006 Southern Association of Agricultural Scientists (SAAS) conference in Orlando, Florida, February 5-6, 2006.
Information: http://www.saasinc.org/orlando2006/orlando_mainpage.asp -
Early food advertising.
- Would you believe that advertisements for food products date back nearly 350 years? The first food advertisement in England appeared in the Publick Advertiser on May 26, 1657, according to a reference we have added to the ACDC collection.And what food product was advertised? It was coffee – touted for some impressive qualities. Among them:“Closes the orifices of the stomach,
fortifies the heat within,
quickeneth the spirits and
maketh the heart lightsom”Reference: The history and development of advertising
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When you see interesting items you can’t find online or locally
- Get in touch with us at docctr@library.uiuc.edu. Tell us the titles and/or document numbers. We will help you gain access.
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Best regards and good searching.
Please pass along your reactions, suggestions and ideas for ACDC. Feel free to invite our help as you search for information. And please suggest (or send) agricultural communications documents we might add to this unique collection. We welcome them in hard copy (sent to Ag Com Documentation Center, 510 LIAC, 1101 S. Goodwin Avenue, Urbana, IL 61801) or electronic form at docctr@library.uiuc.edu.
August, 2005