ABSTRACT
Activism represents a prominent and growing body of knowledge in public relations scholarship and practice. Most of the extant studies focus on progressive and prosocial activism, understanding activism as a form of communication that aims to further social justice and equality. However, arguably, activism is a polylithic concept and not all movements are progressive in nature or seek to further issues in a given society's best interest. One such example is the so-called antivax protest movement that emerged in response to the global COVID-19 pandemic. In contrast to its depiction as a large, single-issue protest movement, the authors highlight it as a movement that brings together multiple issues, agendas, and worldviews. Drawing on Putnam's notions of bridging and bonding social capital, the authors argue that a movement's lack of ability to convert bridging into bonding social capital limits its longevity and impact. They suggest that public relations professionals need to avoid the temptation to apply convenient umbrella labels to multi-issue movements, emphasising the need to adopt a critical awareness of a movement's underlying issues and motivators, which may be varied, to develop nuanced and effective messaging. • The COVID-19 antivax movement is a multi-issue movement, which has been uncritically presented as a single-issue group • Activism is a polylithic concept deserving further critical attention beyond the extant focus on progressive movements • Bridging social capital may temporarily increase the impact, reach, and visibility of a social movement or activist group • A single-issue focus can strengthen bonding social capital, enhancing a social movement's potential longevity and impact • Multi-issue responses require active listening and consideration of different types of social capital & diverse objectives [ FROM AUTHOR] Copyright of Public Relations Review is the property of Elsevier B.V. and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full . (Copyright applies to all s.)
ABSTRACT
This research provides critical, comparative insights into the public communication responses employed by Australia and New Zealand during the first twelve months following the World Health Organization declaring COVID-19 a global pandemic. The two nations share a similar socio-political and cultural context, but despite being highlighted by the international media as early success stories, their public communication responses to the pandemic showed noteworthy differences. Borrowing from cultural studies, this paper applies the circuit of culture model and offers a snapshot in time that reinforces the importance of socio-cultural awareness when communicating intricate and challenging information. It supports the idea that a range of effective solutions to complex communication challenges are possible and may result in a similar outcome, including strengthened identities and national pride during uncertain times.
ABSTRACT
This research provides critical, comparative insights into the public communication responses employed by Australia and New Zealand during the first twelve months following the World Health Organization declaring COVID-19 a global pandemic. The two nations share a similar socio-political and cultural context, but despite being highlighted by the international media as early success stories, their public communication responses to the pandemic showed noteworthy differences. Borrowing from cultural studies, this paper applies the circuit of culture model and offers a snapshot in time that reinforces the importance of socio-cultural awareness when communicating intricate and challenging information. It supports the idea that a range of effective solutions to complex communication challenges are possible and may result in a similar outcome, including strengthened identities and national pride during uncertain times.
ABSTRACT
This article examines the role of influencers during the early stages of the COVID-19 pandemic, as well as the impact of the global pandemic on Social Media Influencers? (SMIs) lifestyle and business model, using the concept of Disaster Capitalism as a springboard for discussion. Worldwide it first appeared that the global pandemic would severely impact SMI sole traders, as income from travel, luxury goods and other ?lifestyle? brands dried up. However, we suggest that brands and influencers themselves have pivoted to meet the COVID challenge, with some brands exploiting the opaque influence of these micro-celebrities. We further suggest that while a handful of governments and health organisations have recognised the reach and social capital of SMIs, their potential in health communication has been underutilised. We write this essay as a starting point, raising questions and calling for further research to be conducted to inform the understanding of SMIs? role and potential as conveyors of public health information.