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November News and Research from the ACDC– Issue 24-11

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Key focus areas ahead for grocers

Online grocery shopping is becoming mainstream, according to results of a 2024 survey by VTEX, a commerce platform for business-to-consumer and business-to-business brands and retailers. VTEX surveyed 1,000 U.S. adult consumers and reported:

  • 47 percent of respondents said they order 26-50 percent of their groceries online
  • 60 percent prefer home delivery for their online grocery orders

This finding “underscores the importance of grocers prioritizing their digital offerings.” It suggests that brands which fail to meet these evolving consumer preferences risk losing market share to more digitally-savvy competitors.

You can read “VTEX survey reveals 69% of consumers” by open access.

Community journalists in Colombia facing hazards

“…journalists across the country face threats to their physical safety, low wages, and stigmatization by public officials,” according to a recent article in LatAm Journalism Review. This journal is published by the Knight Center for Journalism in the Americas, University of Texas, Austin.

The most vulnerable are journalists outside major cities, according to author Cesar Lopez Linares, and at least three have been killed across the country this year. “Conflicts and disputes between different actors over territory or control of the population often turn journalists into targets.”

You can read “In rural and small-town Colombia, community journalists face…” by open access.

Honor for a rural television pioneer

Congratulations to Patrick Gottsch, founder of RFD-TV and The Cowboy Channel. The Texas Trail of Fame recently announced that he will be honored with a star on the Texas Trail of Fame in the historic Ft. Worth Stockyards. He joins a “distinguished group of individuals who have made significant contributions to the Western way of life.”

“Patrick’s creation of RFD-TV, the nation’s first 24-hour television network dedicated to rural America, and The Cowboy Channel, focusing on the rich traditions of Western sports, has forever changed the landscape of rural television.”

You can read the Agri-Marketing Update article – “RFD-TV founder Patrick Gottsch inducted into Texas Trail of Fame” – by open access.

Trust in science communication “at a tipping point”

We are adding to the ACDC collection a recent news summary of research from
the International Food Information Council. IFIC reports that Americans’ trust of food and nutrition science is faltering. For example:

  • Less than half of Americans (38 percent) strongly trust science related to food, nutrition, and diet
  • Most consumers (79 percent) perceive that recommendations about what to eat and drink change frequently
  • Among consumers who say dietary recommendations seem like they are always changing, 43 percent report feeling confused about their food choices

“If this shows us anything, it is that fostering critical thinking and promoting science literacy should be top priorities.”

You can read “Trust at a tipping point” by open access.

Teaching complexity in the age of fake news

A 2019 article in portal: Libraries and the Academy described a discussion-based approach for teaching college students to identify the characteristics of ethical journalism and scholarly writing…” Author Lane Glisson used an approach of comparing fake news with credible information in a strategically planned slideshow.

“This librarian shares a lesson plan that engages students’ critical thinking skills by using a blend of humor, analysis, and a compelling visual presentation. The teaching method is contextualized by research on the distrust of the press and scientific evidence since the rise of hyper-partisan cable news, Russian troll farms, and alternative facts.”

“Breaking the spin cycle: Teaching complexity in the age of fake news” is not available in full text by open access. However, if you are interested in reading it please invite our help at acdc@library.illinois.edu

Communicator events approaching

Here are agricultural communicator event plans you may find helpful, including contact information you can use for details. We welcome suggestions or revisions for this calendar.

April 9-11, 2025
“NAMA Palooza” Conference of the National Agri-Marketing Association (NAMA) in Kansas City, Missouri.

April 29-May 1, 2025
Annual meeting of the Turf and Ornamental Communicators Association (TOCA) in Charleston, South Carolina.

Hungering to be fed

We close this issue of ACDC News with a German proverb about the wisdom of communicating with truth:

“Every lie needs to be fed ten more”

A friendly reminder:

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 welcomed 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 Agricultural Communications 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

October News and Research from the ACDC– Issue 24-10

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“The college solution to rural news deserts”

We are adding a 2024 Daily Yonder news item of that title to the ACDC collection. It involves troubling results of an annual “State of Local News Project” by Medill School of Journalism, Northwestern University. The report revealed:

  • An “alarming uptick in news deserts across the country. Since 2005, the country has lost almost 2,900 newspapers and 43,000 journalists.
  • “Of the 3,143 counties in the U.S., more than half, or 1,766, have either no local news source or only one remaining outlet…”
  • Most of the counties at the greatest risk of losing a local source of news and information are in high-poverty areas in the South and Midwest.
  • The problem is especially prevalent in rural areas. “Two-thirds of nonmetropolitan counties have only one news outlet or none at all, versus 40% in metropolitan counties.”

Authors Richard Watts and Meg Little Reilly identified one bright spot, as a potential for addressing this problem. They noted that 627 U.S. colleges and universities are located in rural areas. About 95% are located in a news desert or in a county adjacent to a news desert. Authors cited encouraging experience with colleges and universities engaging journalism students with rural communities to support local news.

“…our democracy relies upon the presence of a thriving ecosystem of reliable local news.”

You can read “The college solution to rural news deserts” by open access.

Illinois hosts a visitor from the IFAJ presidium

Agricultural communications faculty members at the University of Illinois appreciated a recent visit from the vice president of the International Federation of Agricultural Journalists. Adalberto (Addy) Rossi is an agricultural writer, radio host, digital editor, and magazine producer in Argentina. He has been the Argentinian member of IFAJ executive committee since 2013 when he was also in charge of the IFAJ Annual Congress in that country. While on the University of Illinois campus early this month he visited with students in an international agricultural communications course and with others in the College of Agricultural, Consumer, and Environmental Sciences (ACES).

Remembering Greg Henderson

We join many others in remembering a highly-respected editor and influential voice in the U.S. livestock industry. Greg Henderson, editorial director of Drovers magazine, passed away unexpectedly on August 16. An award-winning journalist during his career of nearly 40 years, he served as president of the Livestock Publications Council (LPC) during 2000-2001. He was inducted into the LPC Hall of Fame in 2008.

Fifty-five of Greg’s always-thoughtful commentaries are preserved and available in the Agricultural Communications Documentation Center collection. They extend back 35 years. You can identify them through an “Author” search on “Greg Henderson” in the ACDC database search system.

New research in the Journal of Applied Communications

You can read these articles in Issue 2, Volume 108 of JAC by open access:

“An enthusiastic but uncertain welcome: Coverage of risks, benefits, and social contexts of CRISPR technology in US. Agricultural news 2012-2022”
By Lindsey Middleton, Anqi Shao, Ashley Cate, Jade Haugen, and Nan Li

“Measuring agricultural means of influence on young adults via Instagram in the United States”
By Samantha Bennett, David S. Martin, Jason T. Sawyer, Soren P. Rodning, and Don Mulvaney

“Influence of production method information on acceptance of precision-grown food compared to conventional and organic food: The role of consumer innovativeness” By Lishan Su and Jason Ellis

“Interpreting the influence of heuristic and systematic cues on visual attention to food label claims” By Caitlin Stanton, Courtney Meyers, Nan Li, and Amber McCord

“Sewing brand messages on social media: A content analysis of Cotton Incorporated’s Instagram content stimuli” By Madalynn Kainer, Holli Leggette, Gary Wingenbach, Thomas Chappell, and Karissa Palmer

“Assessing farmers’ perceptions of best management practices: An exploration of the viewpoints of cotton and peanut farmers in Georgia using Q methodology”
By William R. Taylor, Abigail Borron, Jessica Holt, and Scott Monfort

Izzy Jebe joins the ACDC staff

We are delighted to welcome Izzy Jebe as a new student assistant in the Agricultural Communications Documentation Center. She is a second-year graduate student in the Agricultural Leadership, Education and Communications (ALEC) program with an interest in nonformal education and youth program planning. Her undergraduate background is in animal sciences with a concentration on companion animal welfare and care.

“I get to overlap my interests by creating educational programs related to animal welfare for my ALEC classes. My goal is to get a second master’s in library and information sciences here at the University of Illinois. I am very interested in their youth librarianship pathway.”

Communicator events approaching

Here are event plans you may find helpful, including contact information you can use for details. We welcome suggestions or revisions for this calendar.

October 22-24, 2024
“Transparency in action” Transparency Summit sponsored by the Center for Food Integrity (CFI) in Chicago, Illinois.

November 6-7, 2024
“Level up: Sparking innovation.” Fall Virtual Conference of the Association for Communication Excellence (ACE).

November 13-15, 2024
“A voice for agriculture” 81st convention of the National Association of Farm Broadcasting (NAFB) in Kansas City, Missouri.

A thought about education

We close this issue of ACDC News with a perspective from George Horace Lorimer. He expressed it in Letters from a self-made man to his son:

“Education’s a good deal like eating – a fellow can’t always tell which particular thing did him good, but he can usually tell which one did him harm.”

A friendly reminder:

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 welcomed 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 Agricultural Communications 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