Connect for Kids / Child Advocacy 360 / Youth Policy Action Center - Communications as Catalyst: Hershel's Columns

Case Study: How MomsRising.Org Uses Social Media To Get Its Message Out

Wed, 15 Jul 2009 12:14:17 -0500

Sure, social media can make or break movies—think: Twitter-fueled Harry Potter frenzy or the crash of Bruno ticket sales—but can it help fuel a social change movement and engage people around issues? Blogger Ray Schultz takes a look at what the MomsRising.org network is learning.

Twitter/Facebook: Time Well-Spent for Child/Youth Advocates?

Thu, 05 Nov 2009 07:19:50 -0600

Can Twitter and Facebook really perform miracles for hardworking child advocates? Journalist and Child Advocacy360 blogger Ray Schultz takes a look at the brave new world of social networking.

The Good, the Bad, and What’s Real about Social Media in Child Advocacy?

Tue, 02 Jun 2009 16:52:36 -0500

All ‘a-twitter’ about social media in child advocacy communication? Lots of folks are. But to what end? Are we just looking for connections with like-minded people, or a chance to move people to action—and just how would you do that with 140 characters per message? How much time does it take each day to make social media effective?

Can Social Media Really Spark Social Change?

Thu, 10 Sep 2009 11:06:05 -0500

The advocacy organization Every Child Matters persuaded hundreds of members to congratulate President Obama on his first 100 days and on the “kid-friendly parts” of his budget. How did it mobilize so many? Through e-mail, Facebook and Twitter, among other things. But can children’s champions use social media to make a real-world impact? Commentator Ray Schultz talked with Every Child Matters.

The Good News Imperative in Child/Youth Advocacy-A Plan for Action at the Top

Wed, 20 May 2009 13:51:44 -0500

How could something so simple as the power of good communication about good works and good results produced by advocacy initiatives in communities across America be so neglected by thought leaders and top executives in the child/youth field?

The Good News: A ‘Multiplier Effect’ in Child Advocacy

Wed, 25 Mar 2009 09:15:41 -0500

When people and organizations succeed in improving policies that affect disadvantaged children and young people, it makes a huge difference in many lives—a National Committee for Responsive Philanthropy report offers real results from New Mexico.

Spotlight on “The Cost of Doing Nothing”—and How Advocates Can Avoid Not Doing Enough

Wed, 25 Feb 2009 12:11:31 -0600

A recent First Focus report, The Cost of Doing Nothing, offers a stunning analysis of the long-term impact of the current recession on child poverty and our nation as a whole. So is anyone really paying attention? And what can advocates do to drive home the issue -- and the solutions? I asked the report's author, Michael Linden, to weigh in.

Lessons Learned from Tracking Brenda Eheart and Hope Meadows

Thu, 15 Jan 2009 11:06:56 -0600

Hope Meadows, an intergenerational community in Illinois, creates a stable, extended family network for children moving from foster care to adoption. Its founders just keep doing more to impress and inspire me – and their work has motivated me to take action, following my own “Communication as Catalyst” theory...

Reading Into the Hope Meadows Story

Tue, 21 Oct 2008 15:13:22 -0500

In this October 2008 blog entry, Hershel Sarbin reacts to a recent CFK article on Hope Meadows, an intergenerational community launched in 1993, and how “smartly its founders have adapted to changing conditions over the years.” Therein lies a model for all of us, he says.

How do We Measure Success in Child and Youth Advocacy?

Tue, 15 Jul 2008 10:54:40 -0500

In this column, Hershel Sarbin, publisher of Child Advocacy 360, lays out the basics of the Scorecard Initiative and asks for your help in identifying efforts across the country that are making a difference for kids and youth. ISO: Real People, Real Results.

Smart Messaging: Using the Web and the “Good News Lever” to Engage Audiences

Wed, 10 Sep 2008 16:12:10 -0500

It is clear that there is a huge gap between the good work being done to improve children’s lives in communities across America and the communication required to demonstrate the results being achieved—and we’re going to do something about this, as Hershel Sarbin notes in this column.

Communication Designed to Inspire Community Action: the Under-Achievers

Tue, 15 Jul 2008 19:09:09 -0500

“Because I have a strong belief in the power of community action and citizen engagement in all areas of child well-being, I constantly comb major Websites and print publications for relevant Real People, Real Results stories to share with CFK readers,” writes Hershel Sarbin. A recent find in Casey Family Services Voices publication prompted his thoughts on how nonprofits can do a better job reaching a broad audience.

For Organizations | Children’s Rights Scorecard as Model for Research Accountability

Tue, 15 Jul 2008 19:09:46 -0500

A few months ago, in this column, Hershel Sarbin challenged child advocacy organizations to do a better job of showing Return on Investment from research and surveys on critical issues in child well being. Here's what he's found so far.

Paul Krugman and the "P Word"

Mon, 11 Aug 2008 17:09:17 -0500

To be poor "is to be an outcast in your own country. And that, the neuroscientists tell us, is what poisons a child's brain," Paul Krugman wrote in a 2008 New York Times op-ed. Here, Hershel Sarbin wrestles with the often-daunting task of communicating about child poverty—and why a renewed, solutions-based focus on child poverty may be around the corner.

Keeping Score in Child Well-Being: Why It Matters

Mon, 28 Jul 2008 12:11:53 -0500

Hershel Sarbin writes: "It is my habit each month to search the sites devoted to child advocacy and child well-being in order to discover and report on Who’s Doing What That Works to make a difference in the lives of disadvantaged children. Whatever the organizational focus, I am always looking for 'The Scorecard'—concrete, specific data on outcomes." In this column, Hershel offers an excellent example of The Scorecard, from the Citizens' Committee for Children of New York, and why tracking performance can bring real results for organizations.