18 pages, via online journal article, On April 2016, the weekly Farm News cut its ties with veteran freelancer Rick Friday who drew a cartoon that called attention to how much the CEOs of large agricultural corporations are paid. This study examines the determinants of people’s attitudes toward Mr. Friday’s firing. Using data gathered from a national online survey of newspaper readers, this study traced the antecedents of these attitudes. While the incident drew strong negative reactions, we found that public attitudes were strongly mediated by readers’ attitudes toward Big Ag advertisers. That is, those who saw Big Ag in a positive light were more inclined to report less negative attitudes toward the firing. Another factor that influenced public reaction is the way people perceived the relationship between the farm press and their large corporate advertising sponsors. These findings indicated audience awareness of the synergy between content making and profit making in the farm news business, and that readers saw the relationship between big advertisers and the press as not necessarily adversarial. Those in agricultural states tended to see the editorial cartoon and the firing incident as more relevant to their lives than their counterparts in non-agricultural areas. However, the perceived relevance of the editorial cartoon and the firing incident had no bearing on people’s attitudes toward the incident. Implications of the findings on fostering a healthy relationship between farm newspapers, their readers, and the agribusinesses that advertise in them are discussed.
Benson, Marge (author / J. Walter Thompson Company)
Format:
Paper
Publication Date:
1985-04
Published:
USA: AgEcon
Location:
Agricultural Communications Documentation Center, Funk Library, University of Illinois Box: 30 Document Number: D10574
Notes:
3 pages., Via proceedings from a seminar, "Research on effectiveness of agricultural commodity promotion," of NECC-63 Research Committee on Commodity Promotion, Arlington, Virginia, April 9-10, 1985., Research is vital as communication planning "incorporates the consumer point of view throughout."
Agricultural Communications Documentation Center, Funk Library, University of Illinois Box: 184 Document Number: D00167
Notes:
1 page, Data comparing the number of impressions via AgriMarketing magazine, www.AgriMarketing.com, Agri Marketing Weekly, Agri Marketing Digital and Agri Marketing Mobile, 2005 and 2010.
12 pages., Online via open access. 11 pages., Findings from a case study prompted author to assert that it is imperative that festival organizers understand tourist motivations for attending festivals in order to conduct effective festival planning and achieve productive festival marketing position.
