Thread by @LudditeNed

<Better Late Than Never> @NHMMeghalaya @SangmaConrad
Having behaved like a troll for sometime now on government's CoVid19 communication strategy, this news is welcome. Hope that the communication unit takes its work seriously and

starts by figuring out the crazy ideas about the pandemic that have taken root in the community and gets out of the Shillong English Speaking Class bias of its top down messaging. So some trollish free advice.

1. Khasi, Garo, Pnar, Hindi, Bengali, Nepali are the languages spoken in Meghalaya not English. So, start thinking in these - don't do cookie cutter translations of Delhi produced communication material expensively printed (forget about making east money on printing)

2. Get local artists and designers, writers, song writers, meme makers. By local I don't mean only Shillong based ones. For instance for songs you need people from mawkynrew, sohra, shangpung, ummulong, nongpoh, baghmara etc, even filmmakers who are based in the district towns.

3. It is not the production value of video which makes the video effective, but it's sensitivity to the audience it is trying to communicate to.

A badly made mobile video for whatsapp is more effective than a well scripted short, if it wants to communicate ideas that are relevant to the people and speak to them in that dialect.

4. Don't dumb down and just order people to vaccinate, wear mask, avoid crowds, explain. Explain the science, the reason, the argument. And speak the truth based on science.

5. Local media especially channels like T7 News, Batesi, Ri Khasi, Nongsain Hima, Mawphor have more reach than even Chief Ministers Instagram and Facebook page. Talk to them. Get them to be part of this committee. Let them design communication strategy.

6. Collate independently produced messages by social organisations, individuals and groups and share.

7. Confront superstition and fake news. Don't be frightened of it just because religious and political leaders are spreading it.

And I still stand by one of my old troll post which seemed to have gone viral on whatsapp (I got it back on my whatsapp).So repeating it once again

<Crude CoViD-19 Communication Strategy of Meghalaya Government>

1. Just by the volume of films and material produced, it would seem that GOM is actively seeking to educate people about the virus and vaccine.

2. But if you see the viewership and share data, one gets depressed 120, 12, 18...

3. Vaccine hesitancy and mask denial is at all time high.

4. So what is happening? Why is the communication strategy failing?

5. Simple, much of the communication products are based on so called famous people and pre-fabricated messaging existing in a sanitised world immune from whatsapp conspiracies and religious fatalism.

6. Listening to these 'influencers' one is stuck by the sheer top down nature of their messaging. They seem to think that common people are deluded in their superstition and they need a bit of scolding good message.

7. Why does the government think that people are not prepared to understand science? The government would be surprised to know that if they they got down from their pedestal and took time to explain the science behind the virus and vaccine, people would be receptive.

8. One of the most sucessful covid training in the first wave was done by the hawkers and street vendor union of Shillong in the first wave. It was detailed, funny and interactive. It did not assume that it's participants were stupid.

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