Welcome! Welcome to InSites, Vanguard's blog dedicated to communications for social change. Please visit our "About" page for more information on InSites. |
Chris Connelly posted this on March 1st, 2010
 Marian Anderson: Barrier-Breaking Contralto March 2010
Marian Anderson
Barrier-Breaking Contralto
“When I sing, I don’t want them to see that my face is black. I don’t want them to see that my face is white. I want them to see my soul. And that is colorless.” – Marian Anderson
Born in the heart of Philadelphia, Marian Anderson rose from humble beginnings to become recognized as one of America’s premier vocalists – and used her stunning contralto to promote racial harmony. When prevented from performing at Constitution Hall by the Daughters of the American Revolution in 1939, the resulting support of President and Eleanor Roosevelt led to an open-air performance at the Lincoln Memorial. The legendary concert attracted an integrated audience of 75,000 in still segregated Washington, D.C. Anderson continued to use her vocal talent to break racial barriers throughout her life, becoming the first African-American to perform with the New York Metropolitan Opera, serving as a singing cultural ambassadress for the U.S. Department of State, and appointed a representative to the Human Rights Committee of the United Nations by President Eisenhower. Anderson remained active in the Civil Rights Movement, giving benefit concerts and performing at the 1963 March on Washington for Jobs and Freedom. Shortly thereafter, she became one of the 31 original recipients of the Presidential Medal of Freedom. Winning countless awards, Anderson enjoyed critical and cultural successes throughout her career, until her death in 1993. The “Marian Anderson Award,” originally established in 1943 by Anderson herself as a singing competition, was re-established in 1990. After her passing, the award was reformed to recognize “Artists Whose Leadership On Behalf Of A Humanitarian Cause or Issue Benefits Society.”
Crystal Borde posted this on February 25th, 2010
Personally, one of my least favorite school activities as a student was report card day. While I often knew in advance what the report card would say, I was always anxious about my parents’ reaction. Knowledge may be power, but I think we can all admit that sometimes there are things we wish our parents didn’t know about our academic achievements – or lack thereof.
 http://www.flickr.com/photos/amboo213/ / CC BY-SA 2.0 Like our younger selves, policymakers don’t like report cards, but the tactic can definitely get an organization noticed in the media and the public. More advocacy organizations are using report cards — or scorecards — to draw attention to the performance (i.e. voting record) of Congressional and state legislators on a variety of policy issues.
Recently Environment America — a nonprofit, nonpartisan environmental advocacy organization — issued their annual Congressional scorecard. It identified members of Congress who are “Washington’s environmental champs” – policymakers who voted for the environment 100% of the time in the past 18 months on major environmental issues. The scorecard also called out policymakers who are “natural disasters” and did not support environmental legislation and/or issues. State affiliates of Environment America also replicate this approach and release scorecards focusing on their state’s representatives, as Environment Washington did in December.
Outside of the environmental movement, other advocacy groups also use the scorecard as a tool to bring awareness to and action on their issue. For example, the Human Rights Campaign issues a Congressional Scorecard each year to show how members of Congress have voted on equality issues. The Sargent Shriver National Center on Poverty Law has an interactive Web site dedicated to their annual scorecards on how Representatives and Senators voted on anti-poverty legislation. The Web site even allows visitors to compare legislators’ grades.
Federal and state policymakers don’t like their voting records publicized and publicly evaluated. Their constituents (policymakers’ “parents” in this metaphor) are often unaware of the voting behavior and legislative actions of their representatives, and a scorecard can provide them a new, easy to understand viewpoint to evaluate their representative’s performance.
Issuing scorecards can also open doors for organizations looking to build relationships and alliances with key policymakers. Media coverage resulting from a scorecard release draws attention from Capitol Hill and state legislative staffers to your organization and may inspire — or force in an election year like this one — legislators to change their viewpoint and voting record on an issue. In addition, scorecards provide valuable, concise information and data to reporters covering that policy issue and will help position your organization as an expert and resource for future insights.
In spite of the discomfort it causes lawmakers, the scorecard/report card approach is an effective tool in the policy communications arsenal to expand an organization’s message exposure. Hopefully, it will reinforce supportive policymakers to continue championing the issue or pressure failing legislators to improve their grade and make the honor roll on their next report card.
Crystal Borde posted this on February 18th, 2010
I know, not everyone is Bill Gates. Very few people on the planet can gain 100,000 followers on Twitter eight hours after launching their Twitter profile.
 http://www.flickr.com/photos/ndevil/ / CC BY 2.0 But perhaps we should start thinking like Bill.
Using his newly formed Twitter community, Gates recently launched his newest endeavor, The Gates Notes, where he will personally document his thoughts, travels and work with his nonprofit organization, The Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation.
It’s not uncommon for CEOs and executive directors of NGOs to share updates and information with supporters through blogging and/or e-newsletter columns. But Gates’s new Web site takes it a step further and other nonprofit leaders should take note.
This interactive Web site gives visitors an inside look at global issues from Gates’s personal perspective. Even his first post on Gates Notes feels like a diary entry:
It often feels like I’m back in school, as I spend a lot of my time learning about issues I’m passionate about. I’m fortunate because the people I’m working with and learning from are true experts in their fields. I take a lot of notes, , and often share them and my own thoughts on the subject with others through email, so I can learn from them and expand the conversation.
I thought it would be interesting to share these conversations more widely with a Website, in the hope of getting more people thinking and learning about the issues I think are interesting and important.
With the thousands of charitable and advocacy organizations competing for the public’s attention, Gates Notes shows how a personal touch can set an organization apart and build a larger community. Whether through blogs, e-newsletters, social networking profiles or more traditional communication channels, readers will appreciate and respond to candor, honesty and passion for a cause when shared through a real human voice. Think of it as persuasive storytelling 2.0, using technology to share personal testimonies and insights.
Are there limits? Absolutely. Often, organizational leaders do not have the time and/or expertise to communicate via social media and rely on their communication staff to do it on their behalf. This can pose quite an ethical dilemma. In such a personal medium, can people share messages through social media pretending to be (or on behalf of) someone else? Are we misleading readers? As a profession, we are still trying to figure it out. PR pro Todd Defren’s blog PR-Squared is exploring those very ethical issues.
The bottom line is that whenever possible, leaders should write their own posts for authenticity and transparency. If this is not an option for an organization, then leaders and communicators should consider creating social media presences under their organization’s name or profile, instead of tying it to a specific individual. Then, anyone affiliated with the organization can communicate on their behalf, eliminating ethical challenges.
Honesty and transparency when communicating online are the best policy. And if we take a tip from Bill, the personal touch can be a winning strategy.
Brenda Foster posted this on February 9th, 2010
Hispanics in every life stage are increasingly online, and the majority prefer content in English, according to a new survey from Cheskin Added Value, commissioned by AOL Advertising.
The survey shows Hispanics (58%) closing the digital gap between themselves and the general population (71%).
Since our first study in 2002, the number of Hispanics online has grown significantly – faster, in fact, than the total US online population.
Hispanics consume online media in English, which the survey says reflects a greater availability of English language information (27.6%) vs. Spanish (7.9%).
In general, Hispanics recognize the disparity between the availability of English and Spanish language content. They perceive English sites as more comprehensive, detailed and useful than Spanish language counterparts. This belief is prevalent across all levels of acculturation and life stages.
 What’s more, Hispanics are early adopters and technology leaders, and they favor quality of online information over language preference. Not surprisingly, the survey showed that Hispanics were skeptical of straight translation, favoring meaningful adaptations that reflect ties to their home country or their experience in the U.S.
The survey included more than 700 Hispanics in various life stage groups: the young and free (30% of sample) stage represents people who are single, average 26-years-old and have no children; the young family stage (17%) are 33-years-old, married and have one child; the mature family stage (23%) are 40-years-old on average, married and have two children; the prime of life stage (18%) are 41-years-old, married with no children; and the empty nester stage (13%) are 57-years-old, have children over 18 years old and are married. The survey authors chose this approach over the more traditional lens of acculturation and language.
Segmentation by life stage provides another way to understand the values and interests of Hispanics, based on their preferences and behaviors, which are not necessarily unique to their cultural background or acculturation level.
This type of analysis showed that English-language marketing messages are favored by almost all of the youngest Hispanics, as well as many of the other market segments, regardless of time in the U.S. and English-language fluency.
The entire report can be obtained here.
Chris Connelly posted this on February 1st, 2010
 Frank Zappa: First Amendment Artist February 2010
Frank Zappa
First Amendment Artist
“I have four children, and I want them to grow up in a country that has a working First Amendment.” – Frank Zappa, September 18, 1985.
Frank Zappa was known as one of rock’s sharpest musical minds and an astute social critic. A lifelong free-speech advocate, he testified before a Senate subcommittee in 1985, and he championed democracy by urging Americans to exercise their voting rights. In 1991, after serving as a cultural liaison for the Czechoslovakian government, he considered a run for the U.S. presidency. Zappa’s continued interest in the political arena became his focus, working less and less with music. His efforts helped to stir political interests in other artists, who today are increasingly committed to First Amendment issues.
Crystal Borde posted this on January 29th, 2010
 http://www.flickr.com/photos/digitaldemocracy/ / CC BY-NC-SA 2.0 Understanding how best to communicate with and support refugee communities living in the United States can be a daunting challenge. In 2008, more than 60,000 refugees immigrated to the United States from all around the world. For refugee families, their arrival in America is not the end of their journey, but a beginning filled with new opportunities and many transition challenges.
Recently, I discovered a new research resource that can help communicators become more culturally and linguistically competent when reaching out to and supporting refugee communities. The Cultural Orientation Resource Center (COR Center) develops informational materials for refugees, service providers, and anyone interested in learning more about refugee communities in the United States.
Compiled by resettlement service providers working within these communities, the COR Center “backgrounders” provide historical and cultural characteristics about refugee groups which can help communicators determine what strategies, tactics, and messages would be best to reach their target audience. For an example, read the recent backgrounder on Iraqi refugees living in the United States that were displaced by the Iraq war and its aftermath.
What’s more, the Center has highlighted their available resources on Haiti, including a background on Haitian history and culture, as well as an English-Haitian Creole phrasebook. They are designed “primarily for service providers and others assisting refugees in their new communities in the United States,” and both can be viewed online or downloaded for free.
Research is the foundation of effective communication. Thanks to this free database, we can help refugees seeking asylum in America adjust to their new country by using these documents to deepen our understanding of their past and present, but also learn to speak the same language.
|
|
