Why myth busting might not be such a good idea for your comms strategy
Whatever pigeonhole people like to put you in, it’s likely that you find yourself running up against some common misconceptions or lazy stereotypes from time to time.
When I was a teacher I often had to defend the claim that I was “always on holiday” (eyeroll).
I might be from the North East but no, I don’t have a whippet or a debilitating addiction to lip filler.
Yes, I’m a millennial but no, I’m not a smartphone-obsessed narcissist smashing avocados in my parents’ kitchen.
We find these myths in the comms world too, of course. And when it’s our sector, our industry or our profession, it’s perfectly natural that our response is to challenge these unfounded allegations. Which is why before you can cry ‘slander and defamation’, so many of us take to our phones and start typing furiously.
That natural reaction is also why organisations sometimes decide to build an element of ‘myth busting’ into their social media messaging. As they see it, they’re being proactive rather than reactive, challenging the critics and voicing the counter arguments before the accusations arrive in their notifications.
The 140-character format of Twitter lends itself well to cut and thrust of myth busting — it’s snappy and memorable — and it’s a platform where infographics land well. So we see it, time and time again. Just take a look at these examples:
But the problem with repeating myths? Well, there’s a clue in the word ‘repetition’: it’s a killer. Almost two and a half years after the EU referendum, an IPSOS Mori poll reported that 42% of the British public still believed the widely discredited claim that Britain sent ‘£350 million a week’ to Brussels, with 22% ‘unsure’.
Our brains are naturally inclined to trust statements that are easier to process — and ‘easier to process’ can mean anything from written in a clear font to choosing words that are easy to pronounce. But one of the simplest ways of increasing the processing fluency of a statement? Repeat it. Our brain aren’t as far on from caveman-level as we might like to think, and they love a bit of familiarity.
This presents a problem. Stereotypes exist about all sorts of demographics we might be trying to help through effective campaign messaging — people experiencing homelessness, addiction, excluded students, the working class, people in the justice system — but if we can’t talk about those preconceptions, how do we challenge them?
Well, as far as I can see, we have at least two options. First off, we can focus on telling the positive stories around the topics we’re engaged with and allow that narrative to take the lead. Take farmer Joe Stanley for example: instead of directly responding to — and therefore repeating — climate-change and vegan activists’ accusations of spiralling GHGs and animal cruelty on Twitter, he relentlessly promotes his positive message of producing high-quality, high-welfare food while caring for the natural environment — all complemented by videos of happy native breed cattle grazing in meadows.
Our second option is taking a more narrative-led approach. Tell the story of the real people you’re working with. Concerned that people think only unemployed middle-aged men struggle with alcohol addiction? Well, highlight the recovery story of a young mother working two jobs. Illustrate the full spectrum — show what alcoholism can and does look like, rather than being distracted by what it doesn’t.
This was essentially the strategy behind The Fawcett Society’s ‘This is what a feminist looks like’ hugely popular unisex t-shirt, with public figures from Emma Watson to Ed Miliband clamouring to be snapped wearing one. Ignore the feminist stereotypes, it said (without actually mentioning them).
So the next time you’re tempted to respond to a myth, pause for a moment. Are you giving it more oxygen? Ask whether there’s a different way to frame your response or, better still, a more positive or accurate narrative you could independently promote. Or, to use a phrase borrowed from a farmer like Joe, ‘plough your own furrow.’
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I’m Laura, and I’m a writer and communications strategist specialising in authentic, intelligent written content for the public and third sector.
My background is in education, marketing and community work — I spent ten years as a secondary English teacher, including a four year stint at the British School of Brussels — and my recent and current clients include Agrespect and Changing Lives. I also run an ongoing digital storytelling project with Leeds Irish Health and Homes.
Drop me a line at laura@strikethematch.co.uk or visit my website here.