This post is a continuation from yesterday’s H1N1 topic that explored Alberta Pork’s experiences at the centre of the H1N1 media storm earlier this year. The information is based on a presentation I attended by Lee Funke of Torque Communications at the recently held Canadian Farm Writers’ Federation conference in Edmonton.
He outlined some of the [...]

It’s hard to imagine what it’s like to be at the centre of a media firestorm unless you’ve actually experienced it. For the staff at Alberta Pork and the communications professionals working with them, the spring of 2009 provided more first-hand experience than they could have ever wished for.

There’s always someone looking to make a buck off someone else’s misfortune. But in this case, I didn’t think it would be the US Centres for Disease Control (CDC).
One of the agencies at the head of the global response to H1N1 influenza, the CDC is reported to be selling a toy version of the [...]

Much has been said about media coverage of the H1N1 outbreak – both by the general public and by those of us in agriculture. And most of what is being said hasn’t been very complimentary.
Certainly from farmers’ perspective, the media is to blame for tagging H1N1 with the nickname swine flu and then repeating it [...]

A freelance science writer from Egypt speaking at a conference for science journalists helped shed some light on that country’s extraordinary decision to slaughter its entire pig population when H1N1 influenza was first announced earlier this year.
Nadia El-Awady, Program Manager with the Arab Science Journalists Association, spoke about the events that led up to the [...]

They’ve finally listened. Yesterday, the World Health Organization announced that they were re-naming what everyone’s been calling “swine flu” to H1N1 Influenza A.
Pandemic frenzy has taken hold as we grapple with this new flu that has emerged. It was quickly dubbed “swine flu” even though it really has nothing to do with pigs or pork [...]