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Lessons from Health Communication Campaigns

  • annayoung74
  • 2 days ago
  • 2 min read

Credibility Over Virality

In a world where social media is dominant, the success of a health campaign doesn’t depend on reach but, more importantly, on trust. With a few health communication efforts, from Fact Not Fiction’s sexual health education to the CDC’s Zombie Apocalypse campaign, the challenge is not creating enough attention but staying credible. 


The Fact Not Fiction initiative showed how strategic storytelling can bridge a generational gap and encourage individuals to have an honest conversation about sexual health with accurate information in a sensitive, friendly way. The CDC’s Zombie campaign used pop culture and humor references to encourage preparedness for emergencies. Each of these succeeded because it met the audience online, and they didn’t have to sacrifice any accuracy for engagement. According to the Pew Research Center (2023), 60% of adults are facing conflicting health advice online weekly, which shows why trust has become the metric for a campaign's success. 


Cost of Lost Credibility 

While some campaigns opt for creativity to boost credibility, others serve as cautionary tales. The Dow Corning case shows how misinformation within corporations can create distrust in the public. The outrage that followed Corning's failure is a result of how there was no communication regarding the risks of the implants. Similarly, the initiative "What I Did Instead" was a social media campaign that replaced fear-based messaging about teen drinking with positive norms, demonstrating to the audience that they should reject manipulative messages. Instead, they responded to relatability and honesty, which are the two qualities that are absent from the Dow Corning narrative. According to the PRSA's Public Relations Journal (2019), losing credibility makes persuasion nearly impossible.


Building Trust through Strategy 

The lesson of consistency across these stories is that credibility isn’t through communication; it’s a response of ethics. Campaigns that are humanizing their audiences can use storytelling as a way to empower them instead of lecturing to foster a lasting impact. The CDC’s approach, for example, has balanced entertainment with education, which allows audiences to learn and laugh simultaneously. Likewise, Fact Not Fiction invites younger people into the conversation instead of talking down to them, which demonstrates empathy and authenticity as powerful tools when combating misinformation. 


Restoring Faith in Public Messaging 

Trust is an invisible current for the communication of public health. When this is depleted, it’s difficult to restore, and both of these cases offer a roadmap that is centered on the audience and leads with integrity. By the end, credibility isn’t what earns the clicks, but it is what will save lives. 



References

Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. (2011). Preparedness 101: Zombie apocalypse. https://blogs.cdc.gov/publichealthmatters/2011/05/preparedness-101-zombie-apocalypse/

Pew Research Center. (2023). Conflicting health information and public trust in media. https://www.pewresearch.org

Public Relations Society of America. (2019). Restoring credibility in public communication. Public Relations Journal.


 
 
 

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