How to build a narrative

The battle for reality

“Germany calling. This is Germany calling.” Throughout the Second World War those words echoed through the static of Britain’s airwaves. The clipped tones of William Joyce, better known as Lord Haw-Haw, were broadcast daily from Nazi Germany with the aim of weakening Allied morale. But in a conflict today, would we spot enemy influence so easily? What do foreign influence operations look like in a world of algorithmic recommendations and AI mediation? And as Europe boosts its defence budgets, should we also be spending more on protecting our information environment? This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit simonbaugh.substack.com [https://simonbaugh.substack.com?utm_medium=podcast&utm_campaign=CTA_1]

The messenger is the message

People are REALLY ANGRY because Gemma Collins appeared in a social media clip for the Department for Education. "Bizarre”, “tone-deaf”, “sickening” and “ridiculous”, said the critics. Communications teams spend a great deal of time asking what they should say. They spend much less time asking who should say it. So what does this row reveal about the importance of the messenger? Is it worth working with content creators? And if so, how can you avoid a backlash? This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit simonbaugh.substack.com [https://simonbaugh.substack.com?utm_medium=podcast&utm_campaign=CTA_1]

How to evaluate communications

If you’re not measuring communications, you don’t know it’s working. Yet our profession has an evaluation problem: we’re counting the wrong things for the wrong reasons. So what does good communications evaluation look like? This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit simonbaugh.substack.com [https://simonbaugh.substack.com?utm_medium=podcast&utm_campaign=CTA_1]

The wisdom of the long-distance train conductor

Why would giving a train passenger a quiz question make them more likely to accept an excess fare? And what can that teach us about how to communicate bad news more effectively? Procedural justice is the ideas that the process - how decisions are made and how people are treated - is more important to public trust than the actual outcome. This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit simonbaugh.substack.com [https://simonbaugh.substack.com?utm_medium=podcast&utm_campaign=CTA_1]

Same vinegar, different response

What can a traditional Chinese painting, an Austrian psychologist, and a Roman Emperor teach communications leaders about how to manage personal resilience? Recognising you have more power to choose your response to events than you might think can be a powerful and liberating insight that boosts personal resilience and performance. This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit simonbaugh.substack.com [https://simonbaugh.substack.com?utm_medium=podcast&utm_campaign=CTA_1]