Jonathan Matusitz - Fundamentals of Public Communication Campaigns

Jonathan Matusitz

1. Chapter 5

Divided into 16 chapters, this textbook describes the fundamentals of public communication campaigns for beginners; more specifically, for large audiences like undergraduate students and readers from both the United States and countries around the world. Unlike most works on that subject, this textbook has a considerably high international focus, a thorough description of over 700 basic concepts, and numerous real-life case studiesall of which being infused with communication theories. While this is not a perfect volume and there is still progress to be made, the author makes the point that successful public communication campaigns are ones that diversify their strategies and discard the notion that information alone is the solution to induce individual and/or social change. Effective campaigns are no longer based on the erroneous perception that society will improve if audiences acquire more information. Rather, campaigns are increasingly paying attention to context and combining their traditional media and behavior change strategies with social media and direct, face-to-face community action. In the end, this makes the social and human environment more supportive of the desired campaign outcomes.

Public communication campaigns are typically large-scale initiatives designed, sponsored, and run by state actors or nonstate actors to alter peoples behaviors, attitudes, social norms, and/or beliefs.

In order to modify behavior, we need to understand peoples behaviors when designing campaigns. Understanding the reasons that affect intention and behavior is important for laying the groundwork for the creation, implementation, and evaluation of effective public communication campaigns. Communication scholars have devoted a great deal of attention to the content and impacts of messages on audiences. Public health campaigns, in particular, are often addressed in books and scholarly studies, arguably due to their purported intent to champion social good instead of harm. Nevertheless, other types of public communication campaignslike those of terrorist movements or campaigns for Islamophobiahave been understudied for their potential to produce undesirable effects. In addition to social change, public communication campaigns can be an instrument of self-insight and remedy. Whether it is meant for good or bad purposes is contingent upon us and our value systemthe approaches that we take to change peoples minds at work and at home, and how we consider the practice of persuasion with strangers and loved ones.

All communication is humankinds fundamental symbolic resource for regulating the environment.

The media landscape has metamorphosed since the dawn of the twenty-first century. Although long-established methods of communication are still important, new platforms of public communication are constantly emerging through digitalization, the internet, and social media. Taken as a whole, owing to the changes in the media landscape, public communication campaigns need to be aware that they have to grow more sophisticated and strategic.

It is important to understand that, for a college textbook to be successful in the social sciences, particularly if it is intended for international audiences, it must meet five main criteria: A comprehensive focus, an easy focus, an international focus, a practical focus, and a theoretical focus.

This textbook is divided into four parts: (1) Introducing Public Communication Campaigns, (2) Health Communication Campaigns, (3) Communication Campaigns for Social Justice and Social Change, and (4) Terrorist, Extremist, and Anti-Terrorist Communication Campaigns. Each of the four parts contains four chapters. Most major works that have been available in the past and current literature only cover one or two parts. Under existing circumstances, it is important to teach students and practitioners alike how to create and implement public communication campaigns from a wide array of perspectivesincluding those produced by organizations like Black Lives Matter. Enter the last topic of the fourth part of the book: antiterrorist communication campaigns. Not only are counterradicalization communicators moving to the online space to counter (would-be) terrorists, but they can also assist volunteers or authorities in designing messages that help societies win the war of ideas against enemies (both external forces and enemies from within). Even communication campaigns against female genital mutilation (FGM) and honor killing are addressed. In a nutshell, this textbook is the most comprehensive one on public communication campaigns.