Draft #1
Audience plays perhaps the biggest role in determining how a community tries to reach it in the most effective way. It helps pinpoint the way a community should be communicating, as there are so many modes of it to choose from. While audience mostly determines mode of communication, community mostly determines audience.
A community I was in for all four years in high school was my school’s Academy of Law and Government (ALAG). ALAG is a program geared towards providing students who join it with relevant information through classes for their law and/or government career goals.
ALAG is a revered community for me, and not because I was involved in it for so long. It holds a special place in my heart for what it gave to me, which is something I think makes one consider a community as such: a sense of belonging and kinship. I spent those four years with the same students who were willing to dedicate themselves just like I was. ALAG was a way for me to take steps in the right direction towards pursing what I want to do. It afforded me opportunities I do not know I would have been able to have.
The audience for this group of students is made up of the students. Aside from fundraising and what can really only be called recruitment presentations to unsuspecting incoming high school freshmen, ALAG's communication is almost solely to its members.
One mode of communication ALAG utilizes is monthly lunch meetings. There, the president updates everyone on what is happening within the program, what is going to happen during that month, and any upcoming major events. They were especially effective because one aspect of it showcased how much those who plan them understand its audience, and that was the promise of free pizza.
The meetings start with pizza being handed out to everyone that shows up. After they have had a chance to settle down and tuck in, the president reads the agenda before letting people leave. Holding meetings during lunch with food in exchange for attendance draws students in; keeping the meetings as short as possible makes sure they do not try to sneak away.
The most attended general assembly is the one in which students are able to vote for ALAG’s board of representatives. Every member that attends gets the chance to vote for several positions, including a president-elect and representatives for each grade level. This assembly is advertised through campaign posters, announcements, and mentions from ALAG teachers.
An election one year had three candidates for the spot. I cannot remember if it happened before, but that was the year that I recall the candidates having to stand up in front of the academy and give a speech about why they should be elected. I remember being almost in awe at listening to speeches that sounded as though politicians who had been doing it for years could have written them.
The assemblies that host the ALAG elections are also familiar with its audience. Campaign posters and the promise of voting are enough to draw in members that hardly attend meetings. The speeches help people decide who they want to vote for. Not everyone in the academy is in it for politics or government, but by being in it we all develop a respect for democracy and a drive to participate in it because its importance is emphasized not only by what it means to be involved and how involvement is the only way to effect change. Regardless of how small-scale that change is, it gives us the sense that we are changing something. For a lot of people in ALAG, that is why we joined.
The elections have the same audience as the academy, but use different modes of communication. Campaigning consists of posters hung up around the school. This is less personalized to the academy’s audience, though not less effective. The posters are simple, displaying the name of the candidate, what they are running for, a slogan, and if there is room, some campaign promises. They are colorful and large enough to be eye-catching, placed to get the most attention.
Like all communities, ALAG tries to communicate with its audience effectively. What the program uses to try to convey a message is centered around its audience made up of its members, keeping in mind that its members are teenagers. Designing how it attempts to reach those students around that, ALAG is able to share what it needs to share.