Understanding Your Audience’s Interests

The more personal the subject for the audience the more engaged they will become.

On the weekend of August 6th, a principle I learned as a public radio producer became real again.

August 6, 2019 was the 74th anniversary of the dropping of the bomb on Hiroshima. As a former Navy sailor (Sonar Technician 2nd Class, post Vietnam) I always remember this day. It was a tragedy, even if it did win the war.

Working with the local library licensed to show such films, we showed Fail-Safe.

Unfortunately, the only time available was Saturday afternoon, but we still advertised it and passed the word.

Essentially, no one showed up, just myself and the other person who hosted it. No one else came to see this great portrayal about the imperfection of the nuclear weapons system in our world.

The movie is a serious look at the whole nuclear war mentality. The plot centers around the question: what happens if despite all our technology and Fail-Safe systems, one country accidentally drops a nuclear bomb on a the city of another country, in this case Moscow.

For me Fail-Safe has special significance. In the early 1980’s someone asked if I was willing to work with nuclear weapons and I said no. I explained that I did not want to ‘push the button’ see that there were only five people left in the world and they all blame me for the total destruction.

The response was the most shocking to this day I have heard on the subject. His words are reminiscent of Walter Matthau’s Professor Groeteschele talking statistically of the advantage of saving 40 Million lives at the cost of 60 Million.

The man looked at me simply and said: “I am not talking about big nuclear weapons; I am referring to those that are only about the size of the Hiroshima bomb.”

I nearly coughed up my lunch. “Sir,” I responded. “That killed one hundred thousand people in four seconds: No!”

From Fail-Safe:

Female Party Guest: Two hours ago, you said a hundred million dead. Now you say sixty million.

Professor Groeteschele: I say sixty million is perhaps the highest price we should be prepared to pay in a war.

Mr. Foster: And what’s the difference between sixty million dead and a hundred million?

Professor Groeteschele: forty million.

Mr. Foster: Some difference!

Professor Groeteschele: Are you prepared to say the saving of forty million lives is of no importance?

Mr. Foster: You miss the point, Professor! The saving of those sixty million lives is what’s important!

Professor Groeteschele: Face facts, Mr. Foster. We’re talking about war. I say every war, including thermonuclear war, must have a winner and a loser. Which would you rather be?

A few nights prior to when we showed the movie, there was a meeting with members of the neighborhood to decide whether or not to allow a billboard on one of the local buildings overlooking the interstate.

I was not there, but I understand that the meeting involved strong discussion on both sides.

So plays out the exact principle I learned while a producer in public radio.

You present a program on imminent nuclear proliferation and few will listen, but if you present a program about putting a stop light on the corner of Main St. and First Ave in the city, many passionate listeners will tune in. The reason is the nature or even seriousness of the program does not matter, what matters is how deeply the subject matter affects the listener.

If you want to do a show on whether Iran should have a nuclear weapon, that may be an important topic, but it will not be as important to your listeners as whether or not their son or daughter will be able to afford college.

This is a principle of all communication. It is the everyday issue that people care about the most. If I was still in radio and did a program on our economy and its future, I would have listeners, but if I did a show on how new policies put in by the local government will change your paycheck, this will be a winner. People engage with what affects them personally everyday.

Ironically, Russia suffered a nuclear accident in the process of testing one of its missiles around the same time we showed Fail-Safe. Nuclear fallout stretched across parts of Europe which is how the world found out about the incident. I do not know how many Americans are aware of it, but tell people that they need another traffic light on their route to work and get ready for some real fallout. It may not be nuclear but may be more explosive.

Photo: US Department of Energy Public Domain

Excerpt from Fail-Safe: en.wikiquote.org