Preventing Childhood Obesity - Evidence Policy and Practice.pdf

The role of advocacy
position put out by the opposition as well as advocating
the particular policy position. There is also a
danger in thinking that success is getting media coverage:
to effect change the media interest must be harnessed
to advance public policy objectives, not merely
to publicize the issue. 12 A useful way to look at this is
to ask three questions: What is wrong? Why does it
matter? What should be done? 22
A media advocacy campaign can be planned, but
must also be flexible to enable advocates to react
quickly and creatively to the changing news environment.
For example, if the government releases a report
on rising deaths from chronic disease, an advocacy
group could put out a press release about what action
government should take to address the problem.
It is important to identify the best spokesperson,
which may not be the head of the organization. 23 As
part of this, media training for spokespeople is a good
idea; any adversaries put up by industry will be well
prepared and very experienced in engaging with the
media.
Media advocacy needs to be targeted to the media
that is respected and used by the target audience.
This is known as “ narrowcasting ” and is particularly
useful once the campaign is advanced, such as,
once you have public awareness of the problem
of overweight and obesity. In order to do this it is
important to know which media are most likely to
influence the key decision makers and then to develop
strategies to reach those media outlets. For example,
politicians are more likely to read the news and editorial
pages of the most widely circulated newspapers,
followed by those from the region where their
constituents are based. Community opinion leaders
are more likely to read newspaper editorial pages,
including letters to the editor and opinion editorials,
than the general public.
How d o w e g et the m edia to p ay
a ttention?
Stories must be newsworthy to generate media interest.
Making it local and keeping it relevant are two
strategies to do this. This can be done by bringing
statistics from a national level down to the local level
by using creative epidemiology — such as outlining the
new cases of Type 2 diabetes by local government
region, outlining “ hot spots ” and calling for action to
address this problem. 24 Creating news with events is
also another strategy; this can be used to launch
reports, research findings, or to publicize the visit of
an international expert. This will require creative
expertise to develop a “ hook ” to entice the media to
“ bite ” and cover the story in the way in which you
require.
How d o w e m ake s ure the m edia t ells
s tories that c ommunicate the a dvocacy
m essages e ffectively?
How advocates and the journalists frame the issue
determines how the audience decides who is responsible
for the cause and solution to a problem. This is
important because research around media coverage of
obesity shows that the way it is reported and framed
can divert attention from the structural changes
required for prevention. For example, in Australia,
content and framing analysis of reporting of overweight
and obesity in television current affairs found
that the media sees obesity as an individual problem
with individual solutions. 25 The focus on the individual
can give rise to a “ blame the victim ” approach,
ignoring actions of food companies, advertisers and
the effects of government policies. The emphasis on
personal responsibility moves attention away from the
broader environmental issues that are amenable to
change.
There are several steps that advocates can take to
ensure that the public health perspective resonates
with the media.
• Translate the individual problem into a social
issue. Rather than talking about behavior, talk
about policies that will change the problem. The
language must demonstrate that there is a wider
environment in which people are trying to make
healthy decisions.
• Assign primary responsibility. Most people
assume that the individual or parents are responsible
for the problem of overweight and obesity in children.
However, if audiences are to understand the
public health perspective, then advocates must
outline the corporate, government or institutional
responsibility for the problem. The body or individual
responsible for taking action must be identified.
• Present a solution. It is not enough to speak about
the problem and who is responsible. The action
required also needs to be articulated in a simple and
effective way.
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