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.
Austin, Lucinda L. (author / University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill), Schultz, MaryClaire (author / Elon University), and Gaither, Barbara Miller (author / Elon University)
Format:
Book chapter
Publication Date:
2019
Published:
International
Location:
Agricultural Communications Documentation Center, Funk Library, University of Illinois Box: 102 Document Number: D10898
Notes:
See also D10895., Pages 95-103 in Brigitta R. Brunner and Corey A. Hickerson (editors), Cases in public relations: translating ethics into action. Oxford University Press, New York City, New York. 359 pages., Reports on goals of McDonald's to increase transparency with consumers. While their goals are clear, their actions fall short."
National Association of Farm Broadcasters Archives, University of Illinois. NAFB Publications Series No. 8/3/88. Box No. 3. Contact http://www.library.uiuc.edu/ahx/ or Documentation Center
