Branding the economic crisis

The Great Depression. The French and Indian War. World War I. Watergate. The Civil Rights Movement.

We read about them in history books and use them in everyday conversations. We understand them, connect to them and can talk to someone across the world about them and still maintain understanding and connectivity.

But who came up with the names? And when? And how?

Today, the economic crisis is struggling through its own branding. While there's certainly chaos on Wall Street, there's also chaos in newsrooms trying to establish a common term that newspapers around the country can use and retain understanding among readers, no matter where they live. Right now, possibilities include the "Wall Street Crisis," the "Credit Crisis," and the "Great Recession."

It seems to me that the same struggle continues with the Iraq War - Operation Iraqi Freedom, the Second Gulf War, the Occupation of Iraq. We all connect with different names that ultimately mean the same thing, but we might miss an initial understanding when we're talking to another person. So who chooses the final brand?

Most of the time, it's journalists. Once newspapers around the country all start using the same terms and names, it doesn't take long before they start to stick. People will use them in everyday conversation and eventually there will no longer be initial confusion about an event being discussed.

It's interesting being in the middle of branding. Sure, I've always been aware of it. Reading about the Civil War, I knew someone must have named it, but I never thought about why they did or how long it might have taken for it to become the "Civil War" rather than the "Union/Confederate War" or the "War Between the North and South."

One day, my children will come home from school talking about the "Great Recession." Maybe I'll tell them how it got its name. Maybe it doesn't really matter. But the process is important and will continue as long as journalism is around (which will be a long, long time).

Hyperlocal, an international movement

Another revamp! This thing's starting to look pretty damn sharp if I do say so myself.

Also, I was talking to a Norwegian journalist yesterday (how often do you get to say that?!) about changes in the industry here in America versus across the pond. He mentioned a newspaper in a small town in Finland (I think) that has launched an online site devoted specifically to local history.

He said it's a branch of the newspaper's web site, and the paper is slowly going back in time and cataloging the town's history. It's apparently a huge hit. People have the option to comment on whether they were at a certain event or what significant things happened to them during a specific time period. They're encouraged to share their family lineage - if grandma helped stock the food bank during a crisis or if great-grandpa served in war. It helps bring pride to the town, and it's probably a big boost in ad sales for the paper, too....

I found this interesting because it sounds to me like there's an international focus on the localization of information. All over the world, newspapers aren't zeroed in on the big picture anymore. Of course, "big picture" news needs to be and will still be covered, especially through sources like the AP, the NYT, CNN and a handful of others. But ultimately, local news is where it's at - even in Finland!