Agricultural Communication Research Articles

The impact of using modern technology for agricultural extension communication during the Covid 19 pandemic to develop agricultural extension work in the Iraqi Anbar Governorate

The COVID-19 pandemic has had a major impact on agricultural production. One of the most important strategic crops for agricultural production is wheat, which is of great importance to food security in general and is even included in the foreign policies of countries. Iraq seeks to increase the productivity of wheat crops by spreading the awareness program that supports the wheat crop. The study was conducted in the villages of (Kusaiba and Abu Flies) with a total number of (55 farmers), in Anbar province. Used the SPSS program to analyze the data. The results of the study showed that the majority of farmers under 45 years of age were 70.2%. As for educational attainment, most farmers had only or less primary education at a rate of 61.4%, and the majority of farmers were married, 84.2%. In addition, most farmers have had their lands for decades and renters 83%, . In the field of agricultural sources, their sources came from the Internet by 54.4%, and in the field of agricultural problems and obstacles, the problem of the delay in receiving the marketing amount, as to the effects of Covid 19, the most agreeable was the distance of the health centers from the villages. The relationship was significant with age, marital status, educational attainment, and land ownership at a significant level of 0.05. The researcher recommends that farmers should be encouraged to educate, also the necessity of providing support for agricultural requirements and providing a suitable environment for the agricultural market.

How does the public discuss gene-editing in agriculture? An analysis of Twitter content

As people form their opinion about gene editing applications in agriculture, they are utilizing social media to seek and share information and opinions on the topic. Understanding how the public discusses this technology will influence the development of effective messaging and practitioner engagement in the conversation. The purpose of this study was to describe the characteristics of Twitter content related to applications of gene editing in agriculture. Social media monitoring facilitated a quantitative, descriptive analysis of public Twitter content related to the topic. A Meltwater social media monitor collected N = 13,189 relevant tweets for analysis, revealing the amount of conversation regarding gene editing in agriculture, the number of contributing Twitter users, and the reach of the conversation which was relatively stable over the life of the study. In contrast, engagement with the topic rose with the sentiment of tweets becoming increasingly positive. News organization accounts had the most reach while a mix of news accounts and personal accounts garnered the greatest engagement. These results demonstrate an opportunity for agricultural and science communicators to create affirmative messaging about gene editing in agriculture delivered through news media Twitter accounts potentially increasing the reach and engagement in the social system and with science communication.

Guide for Volunteer Organizations to Assess Risk

Volunteer organizations help communities in a variety of ways, and volunteers serve in various capacities relating to projects, goals, and tasks. With these varying roles, there are possible risks that volunteers, clients, and the organization can encounter. Risk management is a tool that many volunteer organizations and volunteer leaders should consider when thinking of the safety and protection of their organization and its volunteers. This new 4-page publication of the UF/IFAS Department of Agricultural Education and Communication provides a brief guide to the risk management model. Written by Matt Benge.https://edis.ifas.ufl.edu/wc414

Science communication challenges about antimicrobial resistance in animal agriculture: insights from stakeholders

BackgroundCommunicating about antimicrobial resistance (AMR) and antimicrobial stewardship (AMS) requires technical knowledge, consideration of audience values and appropriate identification of communication strategies for multiple audiences. Within the context of animal agriculture, communicating about AMR represents an important and complex endeavour for veterinarians, governmental agencies, producers and the industry to convey policy and practice information regarding the use of antimicrobials in food animals.ObjectivesTo assess the science communication challenges related to AMR by identifying the motivations, goals and struggles of animal agriculture stakeholders when communicating about AMR and AMS.MethodsParticipants attending a meeting on AMR communication in animal agriculture (N = 80) completed a workshop on science communication, including small group meetings with oral/written comments collected. Participants included veterinarians, government agency representatives, industry stakeholders and producers.ResultsResults indicated participants believed providing more accurate information would resolve misunderstanding and concern about AMR to other stakeholders, counter to recommendations of science communicators. Other participants noted beliefs about the utility of stories in trying to explain how AMS is normative and consistent with the values of all parties interested in animal agriculture. Participants noted the importance of public engagement, even if the participants’ perceived target audiences did not include the public.ConclusionsCommunicating about AMR and AMS in animal agriculture contexts provide unique challenges. Few evidence-based recommendations are available for science communicators in these contexts and more research is needed to improve the quality of communication about AMR and AMS in animal agriculture.

Using Social Media to Engage Communities with Research: Evaluating your Success

This new 5-page publication of the UF/IFAS Department of Agricultural Education and Communication focuses on methods and tools for evaluating the success of your social media engagement. It is part of a series on using social media for engaging with the public about research, titled Using Social Media to Engage Communities with Research. Written by Kirsten Hecht, Lisa Lundgren, Kathryn A. Stofer, and Tyus D. Williams.

The Innovative Development Path of Financial Media Based on Mobile Edge Computing Technology from the Perspective of Rural Revitalization

Rural Revitalization is a systematic and complex strategic project that must keep up with the times while also taking into account the times’ characteristics and social development. The media should be at the forefront of rural revitalization efforts. The interaction of various “forces” is required for the successful implementation of the rural revitalization strategy. The county-level financial media center, as a “force of the media,” will encourage mainstream media to overcome their own development challenges, become an important mainstream public opinion publicity platform, and aid in the realization of the great cause of rural revitalization. For rural comprehensive revitalization, big data provides new means and tools. It is not only a powerful support for rural comprehensive revitalization, but also an important means of realizing the integrated development of the digital economy and rural revitalization, as well as improving the quality and level of rural revitalization. We need to accelerate the realization of agricultural and rural modernization to implement the rural revitalization strategy, and the construction of smart countryside is an important embodiment of agricultural and rural modernization. Mobile edge computing technology has become ingrained in many aspects of social production and daily life. With the power of MEC, urban radio and television must accelerate the pace of multiscreen and multifrequency interaction, as well as online and offline integration; create an all-media instant communication and interactive platform; make new media products suitable for rural audiences; realize integrated development of urban and rural areas; and improve the influence and credibility of new media on agricultural communication. From the perspective of rural revitalization, this paper will investigate the development path of financial media under the influence of data mining (DM) and mobile edge computing technology.

Framing Friction: A Content Analysis Investigating How the CDC Framed Social Media Communication with the Public During the COVID-19 Pandemic

The novel coronavirus was first discovered in Wuhan, China in December 2019. This zoonotic disease quickly spread through over 100 countries, including the U.S. The World Health Organization (WHO) declared a global health emergency by the end of January 2020. Soon after, many U.S. states issued mandatory stay-at-home orders, which caused adverse effects for agricultural businesses and food supply chains. During this crisis, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) shared information through social media platforms such as Facebook. This study sought to understand how the CDC framed direct communication to the public about issues related to COVID-19 using Facebook videos. Five videos directly related to COVID-19 were selected from the CDC’s Facebook page for analysis. A content and framing analysis was used to determine emergent frames and the use of organization-public relationship (OPR) indicators to better understand how a public entity communicates with the public during a pandemic. Emergent frames were community, protecting yourself, encouragement to take action, understanding, and fear. A conversational tone of voice was used in four out of the five videos, and each video demonstrated the use of at least one OPR indicator. Implications from this work reinforce that Facebook videos can be used to communicate the importance of scientific information using conversational voice and OPR indicators. It is recommended that agricultural communicators include OPR indicators in social media videos during other similar zoonotic disease crises. Future research should seek to understand the public’s response to this type of scientific communication.

Characteristics and Motivational Factors of American Equine Journalists

The purpose of this study was to identify the demographic characteristics, career motivations, and professional development of American equine journalists. An online survey was distributed to equine journalists identified through their professional organizational membership. Descriptive statistics were used to analyze the data. Equine journalists were found to be predominately female, Caucasian, and averaged 53 years old. Nearly half were exposed to the equine industry prior to their career and have been working in the industry for over 15 years. Respondents were well educated and were most motivated towards their career as an equine journalist because of their interest in horses. Over 70% of equine journalists in this study participated in one to 10 professional developments in the last year, with social media management as the most frequently reported topic. Other frequently reported topics were marketing, journalistic writing, and magazine publication. Recommendations for practice include recruiting agricultural communications minor or certificate students from specialized programs such as animal science, equine science, equine studies, or livestock. Future research should consider the influence of pre-career experiences on equine journalist career motivations and skill development.

Intentions without attention: challenges in agricultural extension communication in Ethiopia

Intentions without attention: challenges in agricultural extension communication in Ethiopia

Analyzing Changes in Students’ Media Writing Self-Perceptions During a Writing-Intensive Course

Regardless of academic discipline or future career responsibilities, college students are challenged to meet future employers’ demand for strong communication skills. However, becoming an effective, professional writer is a struggle for many college students. Based upon concepts of writing self-efficacy and writing apprehension, the Media Writing Self-Perception (MWSP) scale was administered to undergraduate students in a writing-intensive agricultural communications course to evaluate differences in writing self-perceptions as the semester progressed and to determine any relationships between MWSP scores and scores on assignments. Statistically significant differences were found in writing apprehension, self-efficacy, and elaborative/surface construct scores from the beginning of the semester to the end. A positive correlation was found between MWSP pretest and posttest scores and grades on major writing assignments, supporting the assertion that stronger self-perceptions of writing self-efficacy is related to improved writing overall. Students also reflected upon their MWSP scores, which revealed themes that illustrated variation in preferred styles of writing and highlighted the role of writing assignments in influencing their writing self-perceptions. This study supports the growing body of literature that indicates rigorous, diverse assignments are beneficial to improving writing skills and allowing time for reflection helps student writers understand how they can improve.

Fresh, grown, made, and proud: How state governments use stewardship to collectively promote their state’s food products

Many U.S. state governments have programs that promote the food grown or made within their state. In this study, the websites of 41 such programs were analyzed for indicators of stewardship, a framework concerned with relationship cultivation. Several of the indicators were observed commonly, demonstrating a generally balanced use of stewardship strategies by the programs. The websites also provided a platform to grow relationships between producers and consumers. One recommendation for managers of statewide food promotion programs, or similar umbrella food brand programs, is to examine their own websites to ensure indicators of all stewardship strategies are present. Though most websites examined in this study posted mission statements, for example, not all of them did. Expressions of gratitude to multiple stakeholder groups were also lacking on many of the websites. Another recommendation for managers is to implement some of the more creative ways programs have practiced stewardship such as giving audiences opportunities to co-create content. Overall, this analysis showed that state-run food promotion programs function as public relations and agricultural communications tools.

Creating a Community Through Best Practices: Using Social Media to Engage Communities with Research

Creating a community is the way you establish and ultimately present yourself through social media, combining marketing strategy, content production, and community engagement. The objective of this new 5-page publication of the Department of Agricultural Education and Communication is to guide people through the preliminary stages of online community building to engage with a community about science. This document is part of a multipart series on social media titled Using Social Media to Engage Communities with Research. Written by Tyus D. Williams, Kathryn A. Stofer, Lisa Lundgren, and Kirsten Hecht.https://edis.ifas.ufl.edu/wc400

MAKĀKAVI PĀRATIYIṈ KAVITAIYIL AṞIVIYAL CINTAṈAI [MAHAKAVI BHARATHI'S POETRY REFLECTS SCIENTIFIC THOUGHT

In this study, scientific thought is explored in the poetry of Mahakavi Bharati. The researcher has explored the thoughts expressed in the poem of Mahakavi Bharathi. In particular, Mahakavi Bharathi's poetry reflects scientific thought on technology, agriculture, communication, and education. This article is based on library research and quality research. The purpose of this review is to identify and categorize the poems that emerge in Bharati's poetry and to describe it. Selected Bharathiyar poems have been studied. Bharathiyar Poetry Collection Book (20) has been used for this study. This study helps us to understand how Bharati viewed the subjects of technology agriculture communication and education through his poetry at that point of time. Information obtained from this research can be used by students, researchers and poets in many ways.

The Agricultural Communication SAE: A Qualitative Exploration of Opportunities and Teacher Experiences

This study explores teacher perceptions and experiences related to agricultural communication supervised agricultural experience (SAE) projects. Participation in agricultural communication SAEs remains low, despite growing career and post-secondary options in this area for students. To better understand agricultural communication SAE projects and to examine potential needs for resources and support, in-depth interviews with high school agricultural education teachers were conducted. Using qualitative open coding techniques to analyze interview data, this study identified characteristics of successful agricultural communication projects and student participants, motivations to participate in agricultural communication SAEs, limitations and challenges for teachers, and resources needed. We found interviewees were using a combination of internal and external motivators to reach potential students, specifically, internal motivational factors like customizable topics and transferable skills were mentioned along with more external factors like visibility, awards, and efficiency. We also identified barriers to agricultural communication SAE projects, including a lack of familiarity with agricultural communication principles and practices among teachers, misconceptions among students about the agricultural industry, confusing National FFA guidelines, and limited community and technology resources in some schools. This research results in recommendations for increasing teacher participation, enhancing student motivation, and better supporting agricultural communication SAE projects.

Characterizing Viewpoints of Scholars in Agricultural Communications as they Relate to Research Themes in the Journal of Applied Communications: A Q Methodological Study

Research in agricultural communications is not guided by a national research agenda. Therefore, the substantial body of research produced from scholars working in the discipline represents scattered efforts. We conducted a content analysis of journal articles published in the Journal of Applied Communications between 2000 and 2019 to identify the research themes that establish the discipline’s scholarly base. Through an examination of n = 259 journal articles, we identified N = 27 research themes, the most prevalent of which included agriculture and media relations/practices (f = 30; % = 11.58), public perceptions/understanding of agriculture and natural resources (f = 25; % = 9.65), and agricultural communications academic programs and curricula (f = 21; % = 8.11). Then, we used Q methodology to identify viewpoints of agricultural communications scholars (e.g., faculty, graduate students; n = 45) as they relate to perceptions about the importance of research. We identified four dominant viewpoints of scholars in agricultural communications: Message Framing Influencers, Extension-Focused Scholars and Practitioners, Discipline-Conscious Researchers, and Tech-Savvy Scholars. Together, these viewpoints explained 59.43% of the study variance. Although participants who represented each of these groups had unique perspectives, participants generally agreed that public perceptions/understanding of agriculture and natural resources and crisis communications in agricultural communications were important research themes. Likewise, they generally agreed that the role of agricultural communications professional organizations, agricultural communications efforts during historical events, and agritourism were not important research themes.

The Operation Mechanism of Agricultural Information Marketization Communication:Taking Dali-mode as an Example

The Operation Mechanism of Agricultural Information Marketization Communication:Taking Dali-mode as an Example

Navigating Transparent Pork Production: Analyzing Visual Attention of The Maschhoffs Website

When it comes to food, consumers are increasingly concerned with the welfare of the livestock used to produce it. To display transparency and build trust with patrons, businesses such as The Maschhoffs, a pork production company, have created online tools to answer questions about production processes. This study implemented eye tracking and survey methodologies to attain insight regarding the visual attention of website visitors. While results revealed no discernable pattern of navigation among respondents, the findings illustrated a sector of the pork industry consumers expressed interest in was the breed-to-wean section of the farm. Researchers encourage agricultural communicators to develop messaging surrounding this specific process to continue building trust with consumer audiences as well as make recommendations for utilizing eye tracking to assess visual attention to websites.

Big Data and AI Revolution in Precision Agriculture: Survey and Challenges

Sustainable agricultural development is a significant solution with fast population development through the use of information and communication (ICT) in precision agriculture, which produced new methods for making cultivation further productive, proficient, well-regulated while preserving the climate. Big data (machine learning, deep learning, etc.) is amongst the vital technologies of ICT employed in precision agriculture for their huge data analytical capabilities to abstract significant information and to assist agricultural practitioners to comprehend well farming practices and take precise decisions. The main goal of this article is to acquire an awareness of the Big Data latest applications in smart agriculture and be acquainted with related social and financial challenges to be concentrated on. This article features data creation methods, accessibility of technology, accessibility of devices, software tools, and data analytic methods, and appropriate applications of big data in precision agriculture. Besides, there are still a few challenges that come across the widespread implementation of big data technology in agriculture.

Ohio’s Amish and Mennonite Produce Growers: Farm Trends, Information Needs, and Agricultural Communication Preferences

This study (1) describes the characteristics of Ohio Amish and Mennonite produce farmers and their operations; (2) determines awareness of and participation in OSU Extension programs by Amish and Mennonite produce farmers; (3) determines the methods used by Amish and Mennonite produce farmers to acquire farming information; and (4) identifies subject matter needs of Amish and Mennonite produce farmers for future Extension programming. In order to provide effective future Extension programming efforts for this particular clientele, a mail survey was used to collect data from 345 Ohio Amish and Mennonite farmers who participate at Ohio produce auctions. They were asked to describe their preferred means of communication and their informational and educational needs. Key findings from this study were that interpersonal contact was the method most used by Amish and Mennonite produce farmers; they are relatively uninvolved in other Ohio farm or government organizations beyond Extension; they prefer personalized, individual attention; they obtain farming information from a variety of sources including Extension bulletins, newsletters, newspaper or magazine articles, farm/home/field visits, and field days/demonstrations; and they seldom use the internet as a resource for produce farming information. Production issues were rated as the most needful information; examples include disease management, insect management, and soil fertility. This indicates that many farmers still need basic production information. Since 26% of Ohio Amish and Mennonite produce farmers have been engaged in farming ten years or less, an opportunity exists for Extension or other service providers to educate farmers and provide needed information to help less experienced farmers become successful produce farmers. [Abstract by author.]

Commonly Accepted Theories, Models, and Philosophies: The Subjective Norms of Our Discipline

Inconsistent terminology used to describe agricultural education has plagued the profession for years. Colloquial terms such as “big A” or “little a” used to differentiate meaning demonstrate the struggle to clearly identify agricultural education within the academe. We sought to identify the subjective norms of the four specializations commonly considered to comprise agricultural education to determine if a single discipline or multiple disciplines exist. A national Delphi panel was convened consisting of nominated experts representing agricultural communication, agricultural leadership, extension education, and school-based agricultural education. The panels separately identified the commonly accepted theories, models, and philosophies within their respective specializations in the first two rounds. Then, panelists evaluated all consensus items from the second round in the final round to determine commonalities across specializations. Across the specializations, consensus items related to change theories, teaching and learning theories, and shared philosophies. However, enough variation existed within the findings to suggest agricultural education is not a single discipline. We discuss possible consequences for the future of our profession based on this finding, including how our subjective norms may influence publication decisions, engagement with professional associations, and departmental composition.