"...how media advocacy supports the social justice grounding of public health while addressing public health's "wicked problems" in the context of American politics."

Annu Rev Public Health. 2013 Dec 11. [Epub ahead of print]

Public Health and Media Advocacy.

Dorfman L, Krasnow ID.

Author information

• Berkeley Media Studies Group, Berkeley, CA 94704 and Public Health Institute, Oakland, CA 94607; email: dorfman@bmsg.org.

Abstract

Media advocacy blends communications, science, politics, and advocacy to advance public health goals. In this article, we explain how media advocacy supports the social justice grounding of public health while addressing public health's "wicked problems" in the context of American politics. We outline media advocacy's theoretical foundations in agenda setting and framing and describe its practical application, from the layers of strategy to storytelling, which can illuminate public health solutions for journalists, policy makers, and the general public. Finally, we describe the challenges in evaluating media advocacy campaigns. Expected final online publication date for the Annual Review of Public Health Volume 35 is March 18, 2014.