The OneOcean team has been working on a weekly media analysis – the OneOcean Response Room briefing – that looks at the intersections between COVID-19 and environment content, the environment and ocean content, and ocean and COVID-19 content on both legacy and social media.
During the COVID-19 situation, it is important to understand the kind of conversations that are taking place, what is resonating with people and why, to ensure that our communication is as impactful as possible and – at the very least – does no harm in this sensitive time.
The briefing provides recommendations and example materials which reflect the findings from our analysis. Find to follow a summary of the top-line findings of this week’s briefing, covering 20-26 April, 2020.
The full OneOcean Response Room weekly briefing and supporting analysis is available to Flotilla members. If your organisation is interested in receiving this briefing, is not a member and interested in joining, please email travis@oceanprotect.org.
Summary of findings
- Earth Day dominated coverage of the environment – COVID-19 – ocean intersection this week, in both legacy and social media. The Earth Day hook also saw the re-emergence of lifestyle, fashion and entertainment outlets in discussions around sustainability, following a notable absence during the initial phases of the pandemic.
- As governments globally maintain a state of lockdown or begin to gradually ease restrictions, there is a general sense of restlessness in audiences that is leading to an increased appetite for action-oriented content. The research suggests that content with practical, tangible actions people can take to be sustainable in lockdown (citizen science, food sourcing, recycling, etc) will perform well in the coming weeks.
- Forward-focusing conversations on environmental protection policies post-COVID-19 are beginning to become more technical and tangible in content, however, the overall tone remains discursive and communications should continue to reflect this.
- Connectedness between the hyperlocal and global experience continues to be a strong theme in communication on legacy and social media, which was emphasised further through Earth Day content. We continue to recommend original, local content as an impactful contribution to conversations on broader global issues.