If I were still covering news for ABC, I would have been looking for key people to interview and companies with exciting products that came out well on video. The biggest problem was getting everything done in time to return to the studio and produce the piece for that evening’s news program.
These days I don’t have that kind of pressure, and as director of a new master’s program in media and communications, I usually have some time to reflect before writing this column each month. When I decided to visit the World Future Energy Summit (WFES) this year, it was to see if I could get some ideas about the role that media plays – and could play – in making energy sustainability a reality everywhere.
I started by talking to local heads of some big energy companies and asking them how well local and international media was covering their industry. As one might expect, the comments were mild. The media is doing a good job, they said. No one said anything even slightly negative.
The heads of big companies are used to being chased; they control interviews; in the local market, they come first. International media deal with these companies from the head office – both have headquarters or at least very big offices in the same countries. Their relationship is dominated by ritual – everyone knows what is supposed to happen and plays the part.
As I worked my way through Halls 5 – 8, I stopped at some smaller less elaborate stands and got into some interesting conversations. The owner of an SME committed to an innovative energy-saving system was critical. The media, he said, cover only the obvious news about energy. They are not doing a good job informing the public about new technologies that don’t come from the big companies.
The history of technology upgrades and innovations shows that many – probably most – come from new companies, from people who figure out something that headquarters would never have encouraged if they were working for a big company.
One of the most interesting sessions at WFES was a roundtable discussion among 10 people, two discussion leaders from Shell, the rest like me attracted by the title: Innovation – Only in Technology? We were mainly academics although several like me had spent years in industry before moving to a university.
Mandar Apte and Hans Haringa both work for Shell International in something called Game Changer, a way that one of the world’s biggest companies tries to encourage ideas from outside the box and the company.
As we talked about the problems that the project manager for a major drilling platform, for example, could face, it became clear that technology problems were only the beginning. The more difficult problems could come from resistance by local residents. Any project manager who didn’t spend time informing local media and building relationships could find public opinion retarding and even ending the project.
By Alma Kadragic
@almakad
