The Digital Public Affairs Ecosystem

In extensive analysis of digital in public affairs from leading industry sources, I noted that there’s a significant amount of time and money invested into researching the world of digital public affairs in the United Kingdom and U.S.A, and little in Canada. That motivated me to invest time in some serious research to examine how Canadian opinions are shaped by online information and interactions, specifically in public affairs, looking at trends and comparison and contrast of a variety of age groups and media participation and consumption habits.

Key highlights are valuable for companies and individuals who are hoping to reach a large audience with which to communicate, build publics of support and motivate action:

• Automated content curation algorithms on channels such as Twitter and Facebook perpetuate a more insulated view of the world based on naturally occurring communities of interest networks. This is the media environment Millennials have grown up in. As they age, they will bring their distinct participation and consumption habits with them. Basically, there’s a strategic necessity to reach Millennials who are not yet engaged on broader current events where they gather.

• Most Canadians still consume news passively from either traditional print channels, broadcast or from the online versions of those same media organizations. Meanwhile, a cohort of engaged Canadians is exploiting the opportunity to actively participate in the online discussion about (and understanding of) the issues. These promoters/influenciers often have more power than media organizations in energizing public interest in specific stories or topics.

• Journalists are paying attention to what matters to the people who are engaged in the online discussion — Canadians who tweet, blog, produce videos and audio podcasts, and post to Facebook and Twitter and other online forums. This allows journalists to discover stories and key topics add commentary/analysis shared by engaged Canadians and incorporate it in their reporting for a broader Canadian audience.

Digital public affairs is changing rapidly and companies must keep pace. Corporations need building robust digital public affairs programs, retain digital communications professionals, invest in advanced digital advocacy software and implementing sophisticated, data- and analytics-driven campaigns.

It’s time to think differently about who the influencers are, where they can be found and how to have your issues and messages become part of the considered Canadian opinion.