When I heard Premier John Horgan call out and request the assistance of two famous actors with B.C. roots to address young BCers on the importance of physical distancing during COVID-19, I liked the innovation and out-of-the-box approach.
Shortly after the press conference, I turned to Twitter and saw that many folks didn’t share the same opinion. I know that if I am looking for politeness and kind statements, Twitter isn’t the place to turn, but I found many of the comments regarding this tactic to be a little disheartening.
I work in communications and the first thing about communications is knowing your audience. Once you have selected who the intended audience, the next step is tailoring the approach for it to be the most effective.
The goal of getting Ryan Reynolds and Seth Rogen to assist was to reach a younger demographic. The criticisms came from people outside of the intended demographic, meaning it wasn’t an approach directed at them.
Our population in this province is vast and consists of many demographics. Not every approach is going to land well, or even reach everyone. Even when messaging is geared towards a specific demographic, it doesn’t ensure it will be successful.
The two Hollywood actors weren’t being asked to speak as medical professionals, they were asked to assist in reaching an audience that most likely aren’t tuning into government updates.
I know many people who check for the latest Dr. Bonnie Henry and Minister Adrian Dix updates at 3 p.m. on most days. These are the voices they listen to and trust because they relate to them.
If you are reading this, you may think that everyone knows who Dr. Bonnie Henry is. In both cases when I interviewed her, I had many of my friends reach out and congratulate me on landing the interview. For teens and children overhearing these conversations they said, “Who’s Dr. Henry?”
We all know that Henry is amazing and her knowledge and approach has been phenomenal, but there are some young people who may connect with the voices of other BCers.
These young people know that Ryan Reynolds stars in Deadpool and they’ve seen Seth Rogan is one of the many films he starred in such as The Lion King, Neighbors, Knocked Up or Kung Fu Panda.
Horgan’s request for the A-listers help was in hopes of reaching young people who are engaging in parties and larger gatherings that are direct result of higher COVID-19 cases.
As the COVID-19 rates in our province rise, we need to do whatever we can to get people on board. Now isn’t the time to judge why a 20-year-old may prefer to follow the advice of a movie star rather than a provincial health officer.
Personally, I really like the approach Horgan took seeking other avenues. I enjoyed hearing Reynolds’ voicemail to Horgan and the people of B.C., joking of how his mom would like to be picking up young men at the beach. Rogan tweeted out his response that BCers should stay home and smoke marijuana. Both responses were entertaining and garnered attention, and hopefully reached people on the reiterated importance of physical distancing and staying safe.
I have had to turn down invitations to events because I didn’t feel comfortable. I’ve had to have tough conversations with my daughter about turning down invitations to places that she too, really wanted to go. Saying we couldn’t go was hard, I didn’t want to upset friends, and I also really wanted to go.
We’ve been dealing with this pandemic for many months and its been a challenge for many of us. We are not in the clear and there is more work to be done and physical distancing is absolutely necessary. While we know it can be hard to turn down invitations and if a couple movie stars can make that easier for some, I am in full support.
Personally, I think other famous British Columbians should be called upon to aid in this. If we want to get the teens and young adults on board I think we should be asking younger stars from B.C. to step up and help too, such as Finn Wolfhard from Stranger Things and It, Jacob Tremblay from Good Boys, Wonder, and Room, and musician Grimes (who is also Elon Musk’s partner).
