Farmers are sometimes reluctant to talk to the media, for fear of being misunderstood by general assignment reporters trying to sort out complicated agricultural issues. But there are compelling reasons for farmers to be patient — first, because the public believes in them, and second, because most people get their information about farm topics from the media. We know, because the Guelph-based Ontario Farm Animal Council and AGCARE commissioned a survey last month about livestock issues among the public, and farmers' image came out on top. I wrote about it in this week's AgriSuccess Express from Farm Credit Canada.
OWEN ROBERTS
Owen Roberts is a faculty member in the Agricultural Leadership, Education and Communications program at the University of Illinois. As an agricultural journalist, he is the past president of the International Federation of Agricultural Journalists and a lifetime achievement award recipient from the Canadian Farm Writers' Federation. His programs and research papers have been recognized nationally and internationally through awards from the Journal of Applied Communications, the National Agri-Marketing Association, the Association for Communications Excellence, and others.