Communication for change

By Johnny W. Lee

Communication of Change

Change is hard to come by, when someone seeks change, it is often faced with resistance and opposition. Chapter 10 of Communicating Nature written by Julia B. Corbett focuses on the nitty–gritty of communication in social changes. She mentions that “When you try and change an opinion or policy, what do you utilize? Communication.” Communication is an important part in changing the “status quo,” but it is not only “individual messages aimed at individual people.” According to Corbett the message must be persuasive and by reinforced through “economics, the physical environment, friends and family, the entire social context.” 

Furthermore Corbett speaks about how most social movement starts off from the grassroots, the bottom of sociality, where a group emerges to combat local environmental hazards in their area. Social movement researchers found that, “the longer a group exists, the greater the chance it will formalize its structure and operation.” The chance successes is connected with the age of the group. Another key factor for social movement is the member communication. In order for a group to mobilize a response from the people the “communication must be crafted with members in mind,” according to Corbett. It is the communication from the members that leads people to join local environmental groups by communication their displeasure with the current “status quo.” 

For small grassroots group there is a greater dependence on communication from their members.  One of the most important form of communication for these groups is through the media. According to Corbett, “interactive nature of media coverage both sustains groups and changes their internal dynamics.” Generally there are two to get news coverage, one is create it and the other way is to be part of someone else’s news piece. Overall in order to create change it has to start from within the system. Corbett mentions a quote from Albert Einstein saying, “We cannot solve our problems with the same thinking we used when we created them.” This means that social movement needs new ways of accomplishing their goals and communication the natural world around us. 

Change in Action

The film Bidder 70 it shows an example of change in action through the viewpoint of Tim DeChristopher, the college student, who derailed an illegal Bureau of Land Management (BLM) oil and gas lease auction in 2008. According to the BLM, “Under the Wilderness Act, the Bureau of Land Management is responsible for 221 Wilderness Areas with 8.7 million acres in 10 Western States.” DeChristopher bid on 14 parcels of land, which totaled to about $1.8 million without any intent to pay for them. As a result of action he was taken in custody in the film and was ultimately sentenced to 21 months in prison. The key point of the film was DeChristopher rise towards activism in fighting for what he believe is right. It took a great deal of courage for him to rise up and bid on these auction in which he believe was the right this to do under the circumstance. His action is also an example of creating “news” in order be in the media to promote his belief. The film is portrayed from DeChristopher point of view which allows the viewer to see the events through DeChristopher’s eyes. This style allows the viewer to feel as if they were experiencing the events themselves. 

Another example of promoting change is shown in the film The East, a fictional story that is about a grassroots group known as The East. In the film the group participles on anarchistic activates called “jam,” which is a code word for their form of activism. After carrying out a “jam,” the group would post their actions on the web for everyone to see. This is another example of creating “news” in the media. In order for this group to gain supports for their cause they need to communicate their action and be relevant in the media.  Another thing to notice is that each members of the group joins The East to combat local environmental hazards in their area. The film’s character have similar motives to the first film, Bidder 70, which promotes activism, but in a different form. 

As mentioned before, however, change is hard to come by, when someone seeks change, it is often faced with resistance and opposition. An example of this is presented in a New York Times article, titled “China Raids Offices of Rights Group as Crackdown on Activism Continues” by Andrew Jacobs. The article reports about a security raid on the offices of a leading human rights organization that fight discrimination against people with “H.I.V. Jacobs mentions that, “Lu Jun, a founder of the group, said the raid was probably related to the group’s efforts to publicize the recent detentions of five female activists that have prompted international criticism.” This is another example of creating “news” in the media by wanting to spread the news of recent detentions of five female activists. The government in China, however, views these organization as “fomenting color revolution” which generally imply protest in order to overthrow an oppressive government. 

In another article from Yes Magazine, title “Deep in the Amazon, a Tiny Tribe Is Beating Big Oil” by David Goodman shows another unique view of activism from the view point of Nina Gualinga. She is a Sarayaku resident from the province of Pastaza in the southern part of Ecuador. Gualinga is one of the many communities in Sarayaku which “are fighting back by advancing a counter-capitalist vision called sumak kawsay—Kichwa for “living well”—living in harmony with the natural world and insisting that nature has rights deserving of protection,” according to Goodman. Goodman mentions, “many communities sold out to the oil companies. Sarayaku was the only pueblo that didn’t sell the right for oil companies to explore.” This is another example of where a group emerges to combat local environmental hazards in their area. It is an example of why such group emerges, they do not want to keep “status quo.”