Grassroots politics and media

21.6.2010Menethe, Katare and Anna-Kaisa

Grassroots politics

• People who are doing politics outside the political parties

• People are using power to influence decisions that affect society, community and the country at large

• It can be ordinary people or other organizations which are not affiliated to political parties.

Examples from Namibia

• Ekwafo group: ”lets help our selves”• A group of hiv positive people• Non profit making organisation

The organisation

• Why can one say that they are using grassroot politics?

• Management of the group• Division of the labour• The division of the product and what happens

to the reminder of the produce

Using media

• They use the media to communicate with other hiv positive people in other areas of the country

• To get their message across to the nation that HIV and AIDS is real

• They use Radio, Tv and Newspapers to get the message across

Problems

• The problems that the group face through the use of media

• Faces of the people being shown by the media• Discrimination• Ignorance from the public • Portrayed as helpless people by the media• Use by the media to creat stories instea of

helping them

Examples from Tanzania

• Some of the organizations which have been influencing decisions and consequently shaking the government´s incentive to act includes:

• Trade Union Congress of Tanzania (TUCTA)• Mwalimu Nyerere Foundation (MNF)• The Tanzania Media Women’s Association

(TAMWA)

TUCTA

• Complaints on low salaries to workers inrement.

• On 1st of May 2010 (workers’ day) they resufed to invite any government official and declared to have a contrywide nonstop strike

• On 3rd of May the Tanzanian President Jakaya Kikwete speaking at Diamond Jubilee Hall declared the strike null and void.

TUCTA

MNF

• Organised a symposium to asses Kikwete´s performance

• Critics from CCM cadres including one member from the opposition party TLP Mr. Augustine Mrema

• The foundation wanted the president to appear before the Tanzanians to answer the allegations for poor performance

• The president appeared in the National TV

TAMWA

Problems

• Some people end up being arrested, if something has a great impact on the government

• Problems arises due to poor choice on which media outlet to use

Examples from Finland

• Oikeutta Eläimille is an animal rights organization in Finland

• Founded in 1995• About 400 members• Against factory farming and fur farming • Demonstrations, gives out flyers and shares

information in the streets etc.• Three investigation campaigns: tehotuotanto.net,

sikatehtaat.fi and tarhauskielto.fi

Oikeutta Eläimille

Tehotuotanto-campaign

• In 2007 activist photographed 101 factory farms • The photos and videos were published in website

www.tehotuotanto.net and at the same day at A-Studio

• The footage gained much media attention in mainstream media

• Minister of Agriculture and Forestry, Sirkka-Liisa Anttila promised that there will be changes in how animals are treated in factory farming

• After tehotuotanto.net, Ministery of Agriculture and Forestry organizased an image campaign for factory farmers in 2009

Is this what we want to do to animals?

Is this what we want to do to animals?

Sikatehtaat-campaign• In 2009 activist visited and photographed 30 pig

farms, some of which had been photographed earlier.

• Again shocking material were published on the website www.sikatehtaat.fi and A-studio. Next day pictures were published in Helsingin Sanomat and in Voima, the biggest alternative media in Finland

• Againg started an intensive discussion about animal rights and factory farming

• OE demanded Minister of Agriculture and Forestry, Sirkka-Liisa Anttila to resign from the government

Using media

• Activist are producing material for media• Visual and shocking pictures and videos• Appealing to feelings• Negativity• Timing: just before Christmas• Personalization: Sirkka-Liisa Anttila, celebrities

writing about animal rights, activists are giving interviews and telling personal opinions etc.

Using media

Using media• Working together with mainstream media: giving

information and pictures to mainstream media HS, Yle, Voima

• snowball effect: everybody is writing about animal rights• personal relationships with journalist and journalist

(Rasimus 2006)• Social media is used (facebook, twitter etc.), but the focus

is in the mainstream media• “Through social media you can only reach those who are

already interested in animal rights. Through mainstream media you can reach everyone.”

• public opinion

Some problems

• Media logic vs. the logic of OE• OE tried to avoid leaders those who give

interviews become “leaders” who decides what is covered in media

• Much attention to media coverage campaigning in the streets, demonstrating

• What did OE achieve?• Are the political decision made in media?

Some problems

• What now? After sikatehtaat.fi OE did an investigation campaign against fur farming www.tarhauskielto.fi is pictures newsworthy anymore?

• Activists are making media strategies it is hard to predict how media covers campaigns

• All publicity is good publicity (?)