Mary McKillop and all that press ...

If you live in Australia and especially Sydney, you will have noticed a huge amount of press interest in the Canonisation of Sister Mary McKillop. Australian TV newsreaders and current affairs reporters are all over the story with live crosses to the Vatican and Rome to report on the event.
Never has such coverage been given to what is essentially a religious event.
Got me thinking as to why … and here are a few thoughts.

1. The life of Mary McKillop (read about it here) was truly remarkable. She endured rejection and excommunication from her church and then founded her own religious order.
2. There are 5,126,884 Catholics in Australia (2006 Census), who all watch television and read newspapers, so it makes economic sense to cover a story that is of interest to over 5 million people.
3. The Catholic Church do spectacle and ceremony really well so the event works for television networks and it will play here on a Sunday evening, just right for prime-time viewing, AND
   
4. Media outlets are keen to promote Christian faith as they understand its importance to life and eternity …
   

STOP PRESS. Sorry, that last one slipped in .. wishful thinking on my part!

1. It's safe. None of this Jesus stuff and asking Him into your life that evangelical protestant Christians are always on about. This is history and pageantry which doesn't ask us to consider where we stand on the subject.

Some secular columnists have raised questions like, "what about all those other people who prayed to Mark McKillop and who weren't healed? How is that Mary is supposed to have healed the two women whose cures led to her being Canonised but no one else?"

Ever since Christ walked the earth, people have asked him for healing. Asking 'via' someone who has lived a life of commitment to the poor and marginalised, as Mary McKillop did, is a particularly Catholic tradition. Why or how that makes the request more (or less) likely to be heard is something that I don't understand and neither it seems, does the Bible.

But, raising these sorts of issues in the public space means that all Christians can get involved in the debate about faith, healing and what good does the Church do anyway.

Bible vs Mobile phone

Ever wonder what would happen if we treated our Bible like we treat our mobile phone?
What if we carried it around in our purses or pockets?
What if we flipped through it several time a day?
What if we turned back to get it if we forgot it?
What if we used it to receive messages from the text?
What if we treated it like we couldn't live without it?
What if we gave it to our kids as a gift?
What if we used it when we travelled?
What if we used it in case of emergency?
This is something to make you go ... hmm ... where is my Bible?
Oh, and one more thing;
Unlike our mobile, we don’t have to worry about our Bible being disconnected because Jesus has already paid the account.

Toy Television - Why can't newspapers do better with their on line videos?

Everyone knows that the line between newspapers and television is blurring - especially when it comes to the delivery of news.
The Sydney Morning Herald web site has a video segment on most of their stories. Sometimes its a lift from a TV station's news service, sometimes it's something they've shot themselves. Invariably the stuff they shoot themselves is pretty poorly done. Take this example. In the first still frame, three of their IT guys discuss the pluses and minuses of the iPhone 4.0. Good idea and what they say makes sense. (Click here)
Sadly the way it was shot does not. Intercut with this clean, three shot (which is obviously chroma keyed) are cutaways (singles and two shots) without the chroma key - just the green cyc. You can see this in the second still frame. What were they thinking?
This is amateur television at its worst. Any experienced TV director or producer would have fixed this or not let it out on the 'Net. The problem is of course, they're print journalists and sadly the medium of television is still a mystery to them.

Gloria Jeans Coffees - another bouquet

In a follow up to my story of a few days ago, I went into my local Gloria Jeans Coffees store yesterday to be presented with one of their coffee grounds storage jars by John, the owner. It has a vacuum pump on top to help keep the coffee fresh and as you can see, its a handy size and compliments my expresso machine.
Thanks John - I can see why your store won the best new franchise last year. Great customer service.

Atheist billboard on Billy Graham Parkway ...

This morning I saw a news item in the religious news service I subscribe to, with the headline 'Atheists erect billboard on Billy Graham Parkway'. Billy Graham Parkway is in Charlotte, North Carolina and leads from the airport into town. It's named after US evangelist Billy Graham. The Billy Graham Evangelistic Association (BGEA) has its headquarters on the Parkway - in fact it was the association between the BGEA and the city of Charlotte that led to the naming. I've driven along the Parkway and spent some time at the BGEA offices and associated memorial library shooting footage for 'Remembering '59'.
You can see why the news item caught my attention. It took a while to actually find a picture of the offending billboard and when I did see it, I wondered as an Aussie what all the fuss was about (see pic). Apparently the problem with the statement on the billboard is not what it says, but what it doesn't say. The organisation responsible has left off the words 'under God'. The phrase is a paraphrase of the US pledge of allegiance which reads: "I pledge allegiance to the flag of the United States of America, and to the republic for which it stands, one nation under God, indivisible, with liberty and justice for all."
Leaving 'under God' off is what has caused the billboard to become a news story. From: http://is.gd/d6ZUP
"The billboard features an American flag background and quotes the original phrase from the Pledge of Allegiance, before “under God” was inserted after “one nation,” in 1954. That was at the height of the Cold War and the addition was meant to distinguish the United States from the Soviet Union, which officially embraced atheism.
Set to be up for four weeks, the billboards – costing a total of $15,000 – are a July 4 project of the N.C. Secular Association, a coalition of groups such as Charlotte Atheists & Agnostics, the Ethical Humanist Society of the Triangle and Western North Carolina Atheists.
Their message: non-religious North Carolinians are patriots, too."

As an Australian, I wonder what all the fuss is about - especially given what we've gone through this past week with change of Prime Minister. Certainly I can see why the Billy Graham organisation decided not to comment. Storm in a teacup I reckon.

How one phone call changed a country wide packaging contract …

I'm a fan of Gloria Jeans Coffees. Partly because I got to know the two founders way back in the 90s when they brought the franchise to Australia (and then bought the whole company) but also because their stores give me a great customer experience. Last year the family gave me a home expresso machine and I now fill it with ground beans bought from my local GJC outlet. The coffee is always good and the service likewise. Over the past few months I noticed that as the bag of coffee got towards the end - coffee grounds started to leak out of the bottom of the packet.
This wasn't a major drama - but after the 5th bag did this I figured that GJC head office might like to know and check for a faulty batch.
After dropping an e-mail to my founding friend, GJC responded with a phone call to me that same day and then three follow-up e-mails. In the e-mails I gave some more information (although pretty hard to write in-depth about a bag that holds coffee grounds) and three days after my initial e-mail I received a note saying that GJC had spoken to their supplier and they had agreed to dump the previous style of packaging they supplied and move to a brand new style, Australia wide. Wow - how's that for influence? Not sure if my knowing one of the founders made the difference - but I am seriously impressed with such a quick response on behalf of GJC and their supplier.
Just goes to show the power of the consumer?
Gloria Jeans Coffees have also started sponsoring The Jesus Racing team and Andrew Fisher in the Jesus Ute in the V8 Ute series. Another reason to drink their coffee.
Thanks Peter.
PS. Be nice if GJC marketed a 200gm container with a resealable lid with a GJC logo, into which coffee lovers could decant their ground coffee? I'd buy one.

The circles of new business ...

I'm becoming a fan of Seth Godin. Seth is a blogger, an author and a speaker. Here's what he says about himself on his web site.
'Seth Godin is the author of ten books that have been bestsellers around the world and changed the way people think about marketing, change and work.'
A few weeks ago Seth wrote a blog called 'The circles (no more strangers)'
In it he spoke about how businesses go about getting new business. As someone just 16 months into running my own business I read it with interest. You can read it for yourself, but his core message was that in business, its a lot cheaper and easier to reach your existing customers and sell them another one of your products than it is to reach new customers. People who have already commissioned work from you are more likely to come back for more - especially if you delight them the first time around.
As I read that, something intriguing happened. I got three calls from previous clients asking me to do something new for them. In one case a client referred me on to one of her clients because she knew I could do the job.
The coincidence of Seth's blog and then seeing it work out in practice was exciting and now, some months after I read Seth's original piece, its still happening. Can't complain about that.

Reality - 50 years on

For the past few days I have been in the state's New England area shooting a documentary and promotional DVD for the Will Graham Reality event. Will is the grandson of famous US evangelist Billy Graham and the son of Franklin Graham, CEO of Samaritan's Purse and the US Billy Graham organisation. (Pic: Will with his Colin Buchanan 'graffited' dressing room sign)
Like his grandfather, Will is a preacher and his message is pure Gospel. Local churches in the New England area have spent more than a year preparing for Reality and the numbers attending the events are certainly evidence of the work the churches have done.
Some observations. There continues to be strong memories of the 1959, 1968 and 1974 Australian Crusades by Will's grandfather, Billy. Most of the organisers that I met were either converted at one of the three Crusades or worked on local committees. This blogger is in the former category (1959).
The audiences (is that what they're called) so far have been a mixture of the over 60's - who remember the 1959 Crusade and Gen X and Gen Y who enjoy the contemporary music that Reality has organised. From country and western/children's entertainer Colin Buchanan through to 'Compliments of Gus' there's something for everyone. Tomorrow night's meeting in Tamworth is featuring the Tamworth Choral Society, so that will be harking back to Billy's day.
I've been surprised by the people I've met from my past. A young guy who used to be in the Baptist church in Griffith is now an accountant in Tamworth. He was kind enough to say I hadn't changed - must be 35 years since we last saw each other.
Another attender is Gary, whose father Ron was dramatically converted at the 1959 Crusade and was featured in the Remembering '59 documentary. He is here to see if Will's style will work in Bathurst where is a Baptist minister.
The legacy of the initial 1959 Billy Graham Crusade continues to impact Australia. It's not Billy, but churches are excited to have his grandson come and continue the ministry. Praise to God.

So, this is what getting an award feels like ...

Just back from the Christian Media Australia conference (CMA) on the Gold Coast and still getting over the shock (a nice shock) of being the recipient of the attached award.
CMA is the peak body of Christian media professionals in Australia and represents Christian radio, television and film. Phil Cooke was this year's guest speaker.
On the Thursday night they have an awards night and as I sat there and turned to the screen, I saw that the first image was that of this blogger. As the next images rolled across the screen with a suitably serious voice over and music I realised that the winner of the award for 'Outstanding Service to Christian Broadcasting in Australia' was me.
Wow!
As I watched the video some to an end I realised that I'd better think of something sensible to say when I got up to the stage to receive the award. I am told by my wife that I did make sense, so that was good.
It's a strange feeling to watch your life 'unfold' on the screen and to realise that you have spent thirty years in Christian broadcasting. It's gone so fast ....
Thank you to those who nominated me and those who have enabled me to continue to work in this industry. It was a great honour and I was truly humbled. To God be the Glory.

Has the E-Magazine finally come of age?

I've always shied away from publishing content on-line in the same way I'd publish the same content in print. Too often web sites just upload the pdf they send to their printer to their web site and think that web users will be happy to view this on their screen.
This is plain laziness as it fails to understand that an electronic version of their print piece is just not web friendly. You need to take the time to create a web friendly version using html.
However with the advent of the Kindle reader from Amazon and now the iPad, more and more publishers are revisiting this discussion.
fear.less magazine has just launched its first edition (http//fearlessstories.com) on line and on first viewing, its pretty good. First of all they've optimised the page size so it fits 'above the fold' on my browser and while it loads, you get some text to accompany the load icon which says "Saving Trees". Very cute. You 'turn the page' by clicking at the top right (or left) of each page.
The copy and layout looks like a magazine, but it works well on the browser screen and is easily readable. So - maybe I'll have to revise my thinking. Well done and thanks for being fear.less.

BTW, Jakob Nielsen's (the web's usability guru) weekly e-mail alert reported on a survey they undertook on the iPad. It didn't score very well - lots of usability problems.
Worth a read. iPad Usability.
"iPad apps are inconsistent and have low feature discoverability, with frequent user errors due to accidental gestures. An overly strong print metaphor and weird interaction styles cause further usability problems."

Noah's Ark discovered? Again?

Quoted from http://is.gd/bPde2

"Excitement has been in the air this week over recently released news that the Biblical ark built by Noah was actually discovered high up (about 4,000 meters) on Mt. Ararat in eastern Turkey.

The evangelical Chinese and Turkish exploration team brought back wood specimens taken from their find, originally excavated and documented on film in 2008 and 2009. The samples from the structure are said to be dated at 4,800 years old. (Photo: NoahsArkSearch.net/So. China Morning Post)

While the explorers warn they are not 100 percent certain that what they found is the true Noah's Ark as described in the Bible, they say they are "99 percent" sure. Scientists and archaeologists remain skeptical, however, due in part to the nature in which the news was released.

According to Dr. Aren M. Maeir, a professor at Israel's Bar Ilan University and director of the Tell es-Safi/Gath Archaeological Project, this is similar to previous claims which have been proved to be unfounded. "Periodically, there are announcements, almost always by enthusiasts without real background in archaeology, about the discovery of Noah's ark somewhere in Turkey," Dr. Maeir told the Christian Post."

The Jesus Boat, Fundraising Seminar and more ...

Today I announced some advance information about a fundraising seminar I'm running with the guys from Masterworks in Seattle, US in Sydney and Melbourne. More details on my web site - click here. If you're a fundraiser in the non-profit sector, check it out.

Earlier in the year I spent two weeks in Cambodia on a church Mission trip. As well as being part of the team, I also shot a number of stories that came out of the trip. The last one is my favourite and its on my home page. Click here.
It's the story of how we delivered a special baby bottle for a cleft palate baby in the slums of Phnom Penh. Pictured is Linda, one of our team, who helped source the bottle in Sydney before we left.

When I was in Israel in the mid-80's filming a documentary series, I heard about the discovery of what is now known as the Jesus Boat. A first century timber fishing boat lost in the mud at the bottom of Lake Galilee. Here's the story on the Christianity Today web site. http://is.gd/bMjuR

Social Media - Twitter and Facebook the new favs at NRB

After a week in the US attending the National Religious Broadcasters Conference in Nashville, TN and 14 days in Cambodia prior to that, its good to be home. Nothing like getting on that Qantas aircraft at LA and being greeted in an Aussie accent by the crew. (The pic has nothing to do with the NRB, but it was in the mall next door.)

Social Media was king at the NRB. Everyone was Facebooking, tweeting and blogging. Over the four main days of the NRB, there were educational sessions that covered radio, television, some print and then internet and social media.

What is Social Media?
A group of internet based applications that build on the ideological foundations of Web 2.0 that allow the creation and exchange of user generated content. Over 70% of US adults now participate in social media. One out of four US churches have a social media presence. (like this blog)

Here's some stats from one of the sessions led by Nathan Tabor, CEO, TCVMedia.com.

• Social media is how people discover, read and share news and information in the 21st Century.
• It's not the next BIG thing - it is THE THING.
• Social media is redefining how people interact. 1 in 8 in 2008 decided to marry after meeting on line.
• There are 45 million updates a day on Facebook
• Twitter grew by 1328% in the last year

On Facebook, you can find your perfect audience. During the seminar, Nathan demonstrated how easy it was to target an ad to a particular demographic. This meant that Christian ministries who wanted to reach say, single, Christian college educated women aged between 21 and 39 who lived within 20 miles of Nashville could easily do so. (BTW, there are 330 people on Facebook who fit this demographic).

Social media gives you the chance to witness because its easy and free. However your social media strategy should complement your overall plan.

Lee Raney, President, Christian Web Network led another session called 'Prepare to Get Connected'. He commented that its not Facebook people are addicted to, its their friends.
He quoted Mark McCormack, founder of the IMG Management group who said; 'All things being equal, people will do business with their friends; all things being unequal, people will still do business with their friends.'

One session was a practical demonstration on how to get a Facebook page, a Twitter account and a YouTube page up and running inside an hour - all branded and looking the same for your ministry. This session was led by Ian Utile, of Take No Glory Ministries.

The other thing that impressed me was the quality of the music at the evening sessions. It ranged from the traditional Gospel sounds of the Gaither Vocal Band through to contemporary bands like Austin's Bridge and 1000 Generations. (Check out their web sites).

The integration of Social Media into any communication plan was key to continuing to connect with your audience, was my take home message. But a warning from many of the presenters was that you needed to make sure you updated and read your Facebook and Twitter postings every day. Your audience expects almost instant response.

Back to the den of vipers ....

I last attended the National Religious Broadcasters (NRB) convention in 1988 - so a lot has changed since then. Many of the high-profile ministries of the 80's have long gone, some remain and probably should have gone and there's a whole heap of new ones. The NRB runs in three main streams.

1. The exhibition hall downstairs, called by some the 'den of vipers';
2. The educational and information sessions run throughout each day where you can focus on three main streams, television, radio and the internet, and;
   
3. The NRB committee and official sessions of the organisation

Like most people, I went mainly for (1) and (2). The exhibition hall has stands promoting the whole range of Christian organisations from the far right to the right. Whilst some are known in Australia such as the Billy Graham organisation and Samaritan's Purse - the majority are not. The remarkable thing is that most of the ministries in the hall are over 30 and 40 years old - with the images of the founders and hosts needing to undergo more and more photoshopping as the years have gone by. There are younger Christian broadcasters around - but not many, it seems, make it to the NRB.
The educational sessions are well run. The stream I focused on was how best to use the internet and social media in Christian outreach. These guys are well ahead of what I have seen in Australia - and that's to be expected.
The quality of the music at the various events was outstanding. Given the profile of the conference, I can imagine only the best of the best are chosen. Great to see some younger bands also on stage, together with the Gospel quartets. (Yes, they still exist here).
Tonight Chuck Colson from Prison Fellowship is the keynote speaker at the closing banquet.
Great to see a heap of Australians here also - next year we reckon we should have an Australia stand. Wonder if we can get export funds to help put it together?

A cheating song, ten wives left home and 8 dogs died …

This is probably an exaggeration, but when you attend the Grand Old Opry in Nashville, Tennessee - the home of country music - you do go expecting to hear songs about at least two of the above.
The Grand Old Opry is really a radio show with a live audience - around 2,000 of them. The show is complete with live radio commercials and breaks every 30 mins while the station shifts into a new round of sponsors.
The performers are mainly unknown to Australian audiences, but there was some good talent among them tonight, names like Miranda Lambert, Vince Gill and Blake Shelton in particular.
Some of the performers seem to have been doing the Grand Old Opry for most of its nearly 90 year history. That's probably a bit unfair, but many of them are over seventy and are still welcomed and cheered as they sing a song from their latest album - released in 1963! The voice may not be what it was, but they're still welcomed to the stage.
The audience sits in pew like seats. They're all numbered as individual seats, which can make it difficult to know if you're in the right spot. There are families with children, young couples and the older fans. Between (or sometimes during) songs the men duck out for a beer or a hot dog and bring it back to their seat.
The show itself is pretty slow and plodding between performances. The live announcer is in the style sent up by the Laugh In TV show in the 70's. His reading of the 'live copy' seems to be locked into the format used when the show first started.
But it was a great night - family friendly, no loud rock-n-roll decibels and lots of respect for those who had gone before to build the American County Music genre.
Highly recommended as a 'must' if you're ever in Nashville.

Communications strategy for Church Mission trips

Just back from two weeks in Cambodia with our Church Mission team and seems that the communications strategy we put together delivered on maintaining connection between the team and family and supporters back home. Click to read the story.
Pictured are the team gathered around my laptop as the made a Skype call back to church.
A post trip survey showed that 90% of those who received the daily e-mails, with links to photos and videos, said they felt strongly connected to the team. For more, check out the reports on the trip web site: http://www.cambodia2010.com