The Last Fishermen, historic and cultural attachments in campaigning

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Greenpeace is always one step ahead in terms of both innovation and engagement, as well as action and mobilization.

The UK branch has just launched a new campaign: The Last Fishermen. A fantastic piece of campaign based on media consuming trends, cultural values, a skilful use of the British collective memory and the image of the future.

The front-line of the campaign is a short documentary (embedded below) about fishermen struggling for sustainable fishing as they see no future for the  next generations. But it is not only by watching real people struggling that generates engagement and action. It's about the strong historic and cultural attachment British people (as well as other European nations) have towards sailing and fishing.

So, Greenpeace is calling for action by being a fisherman's friend. The storytelling displayed, culturally activated, aims to adjust the The European Common Fisheries Policy, technicalities affecting sustainable and non-corporate fishing.

I reckon not many people would go through all that, but certainly this campaign could engage many. Have a look at what happens right after you give your support to the campaign. 

The Last Fishermen from Greenpeace UK on Vimeo.

El maletín de herramientas para campaña de Google

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Google ha lanzado hoy un nuevo set de herramientas online para campañas políticas, ya sean estas electorales, de abogacía, posicionamiento, persuasión, etc. (ver aquí Google Campaign Tools). A los elementos ya utilizados en otros ámbitos (tales como Google Apps o Google Analytics, entre otros), hay dos herramientas adicionales bastante interesantes: You Choose 2010 (tu eliges 2010) y Google Moderator (Moderador).

You Choose 2010 facilita la interacción, por ejemplo entre candidat@s y votantes, facilitando herramientas externas de flujo de información así como datos para el análisis interno. Busca distinguirse de un canal standard.  Visualmente no me gustado mucho el diseño exclusivamente orientado a los EE.UU. (está claro que es su público primario), pero las herramientas siguen siendo interesantes.

Google Moderator me parece una herramienta muy interesante. Permite abordar un tema y discutirlo de manera horizontal. Cada quien va emitiendo comentarios y las respuestas de los otros se socializan, permitiendo un grado de interacción parecido al de los talleres. Hay incluso una casilla de voto donde los participantes pueden expresar su consentimiento o rechazo. Muy interesante.

Obama and the 'Bradley effect'

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How decisive is Barak Obama’s race going to be the forthcoming US elections? Al-Jazeera has asked, is there going to be a ‘Bradley effect’?

This particular American political phenomenon[i] alludes to the African-American candidate Tom Bradley who was leading the election be Governor of the state of California in 1982 but who was ultimately defeated by a white candidate. The “Bradley effect” refers to how white voters respond favorably to black candidates in the opinion polls but prefer white candidates in the electoral booth.

In an election in which  the Financial Crisis factor and  American foreign policy have been  main issues, Obama’s campaign has been addressing and emphasizing the professional capacity as well as charismatic qualities of the Democrat candidate rather than his racial origin. Furthermore, some Americans consider that the racial component has been overcome and the final decision will be taken among others from the economical, social and international policies offered by the contenders [ii]. 

Nevertheless, the skepticism still persists.

The three debates have finished without knock-outs, but the latest US election poll[iii] show Obama leads Republican candidate John McCain by a considerable important margin of 6.5% -in some cases even 10% difference[iv]- with respect to the Republican candidate, John McCain. As the readers may know, polls are “snapshots”, statistical assessments of what people are thinking at this moment in time but most credible surveys and polls allow for a 5% margin of error. Obama’s 6.5%-plus lead would normally be read as an indication that he will probably win but this does not factor in the “Bradley effect”. In this campaign the margin of error might be bigger. So, these polls will not necessarily tell us what the real final result will be.

The final leg will be crucial for both Republicans and Democrats campaigns. The Obama campaign needs to adjust their strategies to overcome the margin of error and the “Bradley effect” and so as to avoid any “surprise” for the latter ones.

Post published while studying Masters' degree in International Political Communication, Advocacy & Campaigning at Kingston University (UK). Revised by Anita Howarth.

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[i] http://www.gregorypayne.net/bradleybio.pdf

[ii] http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2008/aug/24/barackobama.democrats20081

[iii] http://www.realclearpolitics.com/epolls/2008/president/us/general_election_mccain_vs_obama-225.html?utm_source=rcpwidget&utm_medium=widget&utm_campaign=guardian1

[iv] http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/politics/polls/

Día Mundial de SIDA

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Un post cortito cuya única intención es reafirmar mi adhesión simbólica (por ahora) a esta necesaria campaña. El VIH vive entre nosotros y no podemos ofrecer indiferencia a un mal que no discrimina, puede afectar a todos en igual y devastadora proporción.

Un vídeo de una campaña muy interesante.