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December newsletter

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SANTAPPLAUSE TO 2018 ?

It’s been a busy year for us at Clear Europe and we’re taking a well-earned break. We hope you are too and wish you and your loved ones happy holidays and a cracking new year.

To get you in the Christmas spirit we’re posting our favourite festive video – from the BBC above. But if you’re looking for something slightly less Santamental check out Greenpeace UK’s epic trolling of Coke to hammer home a powerful message about protecting our oceans.

YOUR FIRST NEW YEAR’S RESOLUTION: SHOOT & EDIT BETTER

Learn the basics of shooting, editing and uploading video on January 16-17 with our cameraman and producer Hervé Verloes. Book your seat for our two-day course.

HOW TO SPICE UP EU COMMUNICATION 

In the next News and Booze session for NGO communicators, speechwriter and digital strategist Dan Sobovitz will give his thoughts on how to spice up EU communication.

Dan has led the digital presence and publications of European Commission Vice-President Maroš Šefčovič for almost three years. Previously, he worked on large-scale digital campaigns with international organisations such as EU Humanitarian Aid, UNICEF, UNESCO, the Slovak Foreign Ministry and others.

Save your spot for the first 2018 edition of news and booze on January 23.

FESTIVE READING TIPS ?

Story for Leaders by David Pearl This book is delightfully written, easy to read and full of great tips on how to write stories for business. Danny Scheinmann, storytelling trainer.

The Zero Marginal Cost Society by Jeremy Rifkin How the emerging Internet of Things is hurtling us to an era of nearly free goods and services. Very interesting read. But maybe not over Christmas. Paul Schuchhard, digital strategy trainer.

The Longevity Economy by Joseph F. Coughlin How to best serve a group of consumers, workers and innovators that is growing larger and wealthier with every passing day. Jo Sullivan, crafting messages trainer.

Daring Greatly: How The Courage To Be Vulnerable Transforms The Way We Live, Love, Parent And Lead by Brené Brown I like this book because it turns common beliefs upside down. We love seeing raw truth and openness in other people, but we’re afraid to let them see it in us. Elizabeth Van Den Bergh, presentation skills trainer.

Visual Impact by Liz McQuiston How art, social media and communication have driven major social and political change in the 21st century. I just loved the richly illustrated examples from across the world. Aurélie Vo Thi, Business & Communication Manager.

Do I Make Myself Clear? Why Writing Well Matters by Harold Evans. Timeless tools for writing clearly from the legendary former Sunday Times editor. Gareth Harding, Managing Director.

GOING DIGITAL – RETRO STYLE

Our good friends at the Public Affairs Council just published a survey on digital advocacy in association with our social media expert Steffen Thijl Moller. The key insights? Twitter and LinkedIn are very popular, with Facebook still behind. Traditional online channels like emails, newsletters and websites continue to bring the most value-added – as seen below.

THE SOFT POWER OF CAMPAIGNING 

Thanks to Martin Atkin for a great end-of-year News and Booze session on campaigning. Martin, a former Media Director for WWF International and Creative Director at Greenpeace International, said that good campaigning is not about telling people what to do. It starts with listening to your audience. He also stressed that concern and empathy are key to generate engagement. So instead of blaming others and focusing on the negative, he urged NGO campaigners to use emotion and humanise issues.

THINGS WE’VE LIKED ON SOCIAL MEDIA

  • Politicians are like avocados. Same with news – pitch too early and the story is not ripe. Pitch too late and it’s gone off!
  • Training is an investment, not an expense says Charo Henríquez, Senior Editor of digital storytelling and training at the New York Times. We couldn’t agree more!
  • A punch in the gut or a wake-up call? The dilemma between highlighting the severity of a story and the risk of repelling the readers.
  • This is everything journalism should be from CNN’s @jaketapper – and everything being a spokesman shouldn’t be from Roy Moore’s clueless mouthpiece. The 10-second, mouth-agape silence is excruciating.
  • Here is why it’s better to light a candle than curse the darkness when communicating about human rights.
  • The Global Investigative Journalism Network and the Nieman Lab are among 13 media sites to keep you in the know.
  • Hold that obituary about the death of newspapers. British readers aged 18-34 invest nearly twice as much time with papers’ print editions than with their website and apps according to a recent study.
  • The use of mapping platforms such as Carto or Arc online can take a story to a whole new level.
  • The secrets behind the Indian prime minister’s massive flock of online followers that would make any EU leader green with envy.
  • 2017 hasn’t been Uber’s year and it’s not the only one getting sniped at. Here are 5 examples of how big businesses monumentally failed to use social media properly.
  • Global media freedom is at its lowest level since the start of the century according to a study by Article 19.
  • Don’t blame Russia and fake news for the election result. Blame mainstream media like the New York Times for focusing on scandal not policy. Fascinating article by the Columbia Journalism Review.

 

About Aurelie Vo Thi

A graduate in advertising from the IHECS school of communication and European affairs from ULB, Aurélie worked in the European Parliament and a child-rights organisation in London before joining Clear Europe.

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