Media Advocacy

Issue advocates and political operatives routinely compete for the attention of their target audiences in order to build support for their causes. Such support is often built through "media advocacy." According to David Simpson, media advocacy is "the process of disseminating policy-related information through the communications media, especially where the aim is to effect action, a change of policy, or to alter the public's view of an issues."

Harry Weisbren's Huffington Post guest-article nicely sums up the promise of media advocacy. He notes that traditional news media -- print, broadcast and radio news -- can be a tremendous asset in getting a message out through a (usually) credible source. The downside of these is that the advocacy organization's message will be edited based on the slant or view of the news outlet.

This is one reason why social media has become so prevalent in media advocacy -- organizations can deliver an unedited message, exactly the way they want to present it.

Regardless of the effective use of these media advocacy tools, it is critical for any advocate to convey a clear argument or message. In Matt Bai's book, "The Argument: Billionaires, Bloggers and the Battle to Remake Democratic Politics," we see how the struggle to articulate a clear argument has hampered the Democratic Party for years.

I recall John Kerry's 2004 loss well. I was a coordinated campaign field organizer in Oregon, eager for the promise of a new presidency, and I'd been so certain of a win. Certain that America couldn't reelect George W. Bush. I heard the announcement that Ohio had been called for Bush while on my way to the "victory" party, where half the crowd was in tears. I remember my boss saying, "I sure feel bad for George Soros right now!" Indeed. Despite the money that went into ACT, MoveOn, and Democratic Party efforts to defeat Bush, there was still a critical missing piece: an argument.

To sum up: there are a variety of important media advocacy tools that organizations and causes can pursue to get a message out -- and with the advent of social media, media advocacy is easier than ever. The first step, however, is to know what you're going to say.