David L. Doerfert

What Are Agriculture Industry Professionals Trying to Tell Us? Implications for University-Level Agricultural Communications Curricula

Two recent activities have solicited the input of professionals on the future of agricultural communications within the agriculture industry. This paper reexamines these industry-based information and research activities for potential themes that could impact the current and future direction of communications-related activities within the agriculture profession. A reexamination of the outcomes of these two activities may provide insight and guidance for curricular and degree changes being considered by university-level agricultural communications educators. The four themes identified and discussed in this article are as follows: (a) the rapidly changing communication needs, wants, and expectations of the agriculture industry; (b) the new stakeholders of agricultural communications activities and products, and their diverse communication needs, wants, and preferences; (c) the shortened response time for communication-related activities; and (d) the increasing importance of the image of the agriculture industry and agricultural communications professionals. The themes that have emerged from industry through this study underscore the importance of researching the employee needs of the 21st century agriculturalist and agricultural communicator. These results may also positively influence university-level curricula and degree programs both within and outside of agricultural communications. This research is available in Journal of Applied Communications: https://newprairiepress.org/jac/vol90/iss3/5

Advocacy in Agricultural Social Movements: Exploring Facebook as a Public Relations Communication Tool

Public relations is the act of building and maintaining mutually beneficial relationships among organizations and people through the use of marketing and promoting strategies to build and maintain a successful public image. Currently, social media (including Facebook) are being adopted as a communication tool in public relations efforts to build relationships with different publics. Facebook is a popular social networking site that has the capability to offer a range of promotional tools and allows users to build relationships. The purpose of this study was to determine how administrators of Facebook groups are utilizing Facebook for promoting their agricultural advocacy campaigns. Eight semi-structured interviews were conducted with Facebook group administrators who actively contribute to the promotion of a cause by using the social networking site. Results indicated that administrators believe Facebook has been an effective form of communication and that people join their groups primarily to engage in conversations about agriculture and to build relationships with people who share similar interests. Overall, participants were pleased with the outcome of their Facebook groups and offered advice for future practitioners who want to use social media to promote agricultural social movements. The results of this study also led to the development of a model to illustrate how Facebook can be used to promote social movements in agriculture.

Exploring Agriculturalists' Use of Social Media for Agricultural Marketing

The Internet has had a significant impact in how agriculturists get their information and how they communicate with consumers. The use of user-generated media, especially social media, now provides agriculturalists free and practically instantaneous channels through which to engage with their audience members. The purpose of this study was to explore agriculturalists’ use of social media for agri-marketing. This study used a qualitative research approach consisting of in-depth interviews with four agriculturalists who met certain criteria: an individual (1) working in agriculture, (2) using several social media platforms, and (3) using social media to market his/her own agricultural operation. Analysis of the interview transcripts identif ied seven emergent themes to address the three research objectives. Findings indicated participants became active using social media to combat dominant negative messages about production agriculture. Participants also discussed how they manage their social media presence and balance responsibilities. Overall, they were positive about the use of social media for their own operations and for the broader agricultural community. Additional analysis indicated some gender differences in regard to social media use. Recommendations for both practitioners and researchers are provided to further explore social media use in agriculture. Creative Commons License This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-Share Alike 3.0 License. This research is available in Journal of Applied Communications: https://newprairiepress.org/jac/vol98/iss4/7 Re se ar ch Exploring Agriculturalists’ Use of Social Media for Agricultural Marketing Danielle White, Courtney Meyers, David Doerfert and Erica Irlbeck

Using Facebook as a communication tool in agricultural-related social movements

A social movement is a personal obligation taken on by an individual, due to either a personal experience or responsibility, to pursue action to implement a change in a community or society. Facebook is a social networking device in which users interact through conversations, and build relationships by networking with other users. Facebook groups are created as part of a smaller community within the social networking site and focus on particular interests or beliefs about certain issues. The purpose of this study was to determine why individuals use social media, specifically Facebook, to communicate information in social movements related to agricultural issues. Eight semi-structured interviews were conducted with Facebook group administrators who actively contribute to the promotion of an agricultural-related social movement. Results indicated that Facebook was a beneficial communication tool to help the social movements reach more individuals. The Facebook group administrators were motivated to become involved with the social movement due to personal experiences. Although Facebook is the primary method used to reach target audience members, the participants said they use a variety of other communication channels. Additional research should explore other social movements to determine the impact social media has on communication efforts.

Farm Broadcaster Knowledge and Beliefs of Biotechnology and Genetically Modified Organisms

Farm broadcasting members of the National Association of Farm Broadcasters (NAFB) were studied to determine their knowledge and beliefs about biotechnology and genetically modified organisms. This study used bimodal data collection techniques. Farm broadcasters in this study were described as typically male, over 35 years of age, married, and with at least some college education. Most farm broadcasters had an audience size of more than 50,000 listeners with typically a local distribution. In addition, most deliver a story about biotechnology and genetically modified organisms at least once a week. The majority of farm broadcasters believed that it was important to have a knowledge base of the subject they were reporting on, yet they did not demonstrate a high level of knowledge about food biotechnology, as measured by eight multiple choice questions. The average farm broadcaster only answered five of the eight questions correctly. Farm broadcasters believe that the U.S. food supply is safe and do not feel that GMOs are a risk for future generations. However, farm broadcasters believe that their audiences have a higher perception of GMOs as a potential risk to future generations. Recommendations for future research and evaluation of university agricultural communication curriculum are included. Authors David L. Doerfert, J. Tanner Robertson, Cindy Akers, and Mark Kistler This research is available in Journal of Applied Communications: https://newprairiepress.org/jac/vol89/iss4/4

Agriculturists Personal and Business Use of Online Communication Tools

New programs and efforts are being promoted to help American farmers and ranchers succeed in their efforts, both in their daily operations and in their attempts to reach consumers. Online communication tools may be one way agriculturists can share their stories and market directly to these audience members, but much is unknown regarding the extent to which these tools are being implemented. The purpose of this study was to determine agriculturists’ current use of online communication tools for both personal and business purposes. The target population for this study was members of organizations that serve young and/or beginning farmers and ranchers in three states. An online survey was administered electronically to members of seven organizations, and 185 completed questionnaires were analyzed. The findings indicated websites and Facebook are the commonly used online communication tools for personal and business use. Many tools are not used at all for either purpose. A significant correlation was found between the use of online communication tools in personal and business settings. Additional research is needed to further explore agriculturalists’ use of these tools for both purposes.

Preparing for the Next 150 Years of Agricultural Communications

On the 150th anniversary of the land grant system, the authors examined the history, current situation and potential future of agricultural communications as an academic discipline. Their review highlights the past history of the field, focusing on the evolution of agricultural communications from print based journalism to a field that encompasses strategic communications, marketing and branding, public relations and online and social media. The authors also look ahead to the next 150 years, offering ideas as to how students will be prepared academically in the future and how the structure of academic departments may change to focus on inter and transdisciplinary “issue response teams” designed to more effectively address complex issues and problems across disciplinary boundaries.

Chalkboards to Virtual Environments: Technology's Role in Expanding the Classroom to Provide Professional Development and Education for Agricultural Communicators

Agricultural communications education has evolved over time, shifting in an effort to meet the needs of students through new approaches, new methods, and new technologies. The purpose of this paper was to examine the influence of educational and communications technologies on agricultural communications education. A literature review related to the history of the processes, methods, and technology uses in education and more specifically in agricultural communications education was conducted. Technology was identified as enhancing learning in settings that included secondary education, university settings, continuing education, Extension programming, and professional development. Only a limited number of articles specifically addressed the use of technology to teach agricultural communications. The high rate of change in communication technologies was identified as a critical reason for considering the role of technology in the agricultural communications education context. A virtual environment to teach crisis communications was shared as an example of successful educational technology use. Continued research focusing on teaching methods and tools related to agricultural communications education is needed. New technologies have the potential to encourage innovative learning experiences; however, the ongoing challenge to educators will be to harness the technology for the good of the learner.

The contribution of selected instructional methods toward graduate student understanding of crisis communication

Providing quality instruction that meets students’ learning needs is an issue facing teachers of agriculture in higher education. A considerable amount of research has been devoted to assessing the effectiveness of various instructional methods, but the research is inconclusive in identifying a singular method of instruction that works well with all individuals. The purpose of this study was to examine students’ perceived value of instructional methods in contribution towards their understanding of and confidence in risk and crisis communication content and practices. This study also compared students (N = 30) from two semesters to determine if new instructional methods incorporating new technology (i.e., Second Life) impacted the knowledge, comprehension, and self-confidence of students. In this descriptive survey research, the data revealed that students did not identify one singular instructional method as being most beneficial and influential, but found a combination of instructional methods influenced their self-confidence. No significant differences were found in changes in students’ content knowledge scores or end-of-course degree of

Identifying Agriculturists' Online Communication Tool Training Needs

Online communication tools, specifically social media, have provided new ways for agriculturists to promote and advocate for agriculture. Although agricultural producers find value in using social media to communicate about agriculture, many are not comfortable using these tools. The purpose of this study was to identify and prioritize training needs of agriculturists regarding use of various online communication tools. The USDA’s Beginning Farmers and Ranchers Development Program provided funding to develop workshops that would help agriculturists learn to use online communication tools effectively. Members of seven agricultural organizations in three states were sent a link to an online questionnaire, and 185 completed responses were analyzed for this study. Across all tasks, the highest means for perceived importance dealt with website tasks while Twitter and blogging tasks had the lowest means for perceived importance. Many of the tasks respondents were most competent completing were the beginning steps and they were least competent completing more complex uses of social media. Using the Borich needs assessment model, respondents indicated a greater need for training on topics related to websites, other online communication tasks, and Facebook. These results were used to develop a daylong online communications training workshop in each of the states.