mmealling - 16/3/2007 11:16 PMChris, IMHO, the reason you don't see NASA in a lot of the "main attractions" advertisement is that there is no real way for those who are advertising to monetize NASA's existence. Who directly makes money from tourists visiting NASA?
mmealling - 17/3/2007 3:16 PMChris, IMHO, the reason you don't see NASA in a lot of the "main attractions" advertisement is that there is no real way for those who are advertising to monetize NASA's existence. Who directly makes money from tourists visiting NASA?
Well, I can give you the standard formula and then some "with steroids" suggestions.
Engage....
Edit: I forgot to mention letters to the editor. Many local and national papers, radio and TV broadcasts will editorialize -- usually negatively -- about money spent ("wasted") on space exploration and efforts to go to the Moon and Mars -- often making the distinction that money spent on manned space exploration is a evil waste but money spent on robotic exploration is a sensible expenditure -- as long as it doesn't amount to much. Typically these editorials/comments are woefully ignorant of relevant facts and receive very little criticism from readers/viewers. Anything you can do to reverse this trend of negative press is extremely valuable. It is not just that the public reads these comments and tends to take them as true, but they also help to shape opinions in the State and Federal Government. This is a vicious cycle that all of us need to help reverse.
MarsDriver - 18/3/2007 11:54 AM In the end, expanding our numbers in pro active ways is the best thing we can all do to give all space projects a brighter future.
Yes! Because its apathy, ignorance, and disillusionment that have killed the momentum in space. Attack the root cause.
kraisee - 18/3/2007 5:30 AMI see the next big opportunity for NASA to reach the public as being the Lunar precursor missions. The first rover going to the moon should be sent to one of the Apollo landing sites to explore the area.
But there was never very much follow-up to this intense public interest. There were many advertising and merchandising opportunities available which would have kept the MER's in the news, but which were never followed up. These could have potentially raised money and interest for future missions, not to mention captured peoples interest and increased SUPPORT for such program.
Tuesday, Sept. 13, 2005New Report Shows Food Industry Advertising Overwhelms Government’s “5 A Day” Campaign to Fight Obesity and Promote Healthy Eating. Food, beverage, candy, and restaurant advertising expenditures weigh in at $11.26 billion in 2004, versus $9.55 million to promote healthful eatingA report released today documents how money spent to advertise foods including soda, candy, snacks and fast foods, dwarfs the dollars spent to promote the California and Federal “5 A Day” programs to encourage eating vegetables and fruits. The report, written by Consumers Union, the nonprofit publisher of Consumer Reports, and the California Pan-Ethnic Health Network (CPEHN), a nonprofit health advocacy organization working with communities of color, concludes that this imbalance is one of the key factors contributing to unhealthful dietary trends in the United States that have led to the obesity crisis.
copernicus - 5/7/2007 6:02 PM Just a few more thoughts on this. For those of you who remember the 1980's, recall that the costs of building Endeavour, the replacement for Challenger, was NOT in Reagan's budget. "Saint" Reagan said a lot of pretty words after Challenger, but when it came time to back up those words, old Ronnie was not to be found. The "heavy-lifting" needed to add funds to NASA's budget, so that Endeavour could be built, fell to a handful of devoted members of Congress. We owe a lot to those true supporters of NASA during one of its dark chapters. Not only did that funding bulge get Endeavour built, it also helped to boost NASA's budget baseline, as I recall, leading to extra Billions for NASA's budget over the last 20 years.
Jim - 17/3/2007 10:45 AMThere are TV spots advertising the KSC visitor center. If you drive around the Orlando area (especially what is called the "Attractions Area" you will see KSC visitor center billboards right next to Disney's and Universal's
psloss - 5/7/2007 9:15 PMThanks.