In December, NASA created two intriguing videos to help communicate and educate citizens about NASA. I stumbled across an article on FCW announcing that NASA has recently published a video parody of PSY’s Gangnam style. The article states that it has been received with mixed reviews from NASA personnel. FCW blog states:
NASA Administrator Charles Bolden said the video serves a valuable educational purpose, but he acknowledged that not everyone in the NASA community gets it.
“I get a lot of notes from my friends from the Apollo era who say we’re lost, we don’t know what we’re doing,” the Los Angeles Times quoted Bolden as saying at a Dec. 20 event. “And after one of them saw this YouTube video, they were completely convinced we are really messed up.”
NASA has always thought of creative ways to tell the remarkable work of the agency. Bringing in pop culture is a great way to reach a new audience and craft a story around the agency’s mission. Check out the video:
Another way NASA has tapped into pop culture is by explaining why the world would not end in December 2012. In NASA’s blog, Beyond 2012: Why The World Did Not End, NASA writes:
If you’re reading this story, it means the world didn’t end on Dec. 21, 2012. Despite reports of an ancient Maya prophecy, a mysterious planet on a collision course with Earth, or a reverse in Earth’s rotation, we’re still here.
The Mayan connection “was a misconception from the very beginning,” says Dr. John Carlson, director of the Center for Archaeoastronomy. “The Maya calendar did not end on Dec. 21, 2012, and there were no Maya prophecies foretelling the end of the world on that date.”
They also developed a video with experts explaining and debunking common conspiracies about why the world would end in December, check it out here:
These are two great examples how NASA has leveraged video and a variety of social channels to educated and inform citizens on the mission of the agency.
What do you think? Is the PSY video and debunking end of the world theories a good use of public funds and way to educate citizens?
 |
The Federal Consulting Group (FCG) is a franchise within the U.S. Department of the Interior. As the successor to the Federal Quality Institute, FCG has been advising and assisting federal agencies for more than 20 years with many of their senior consultants achieving results in large, high-profile government programs and projects. Check out their “Citizen Engagement & Customer Service” group on GovLoop as well as the Communications & Citizen Engagement Sub-Community of which they are a council member. |
