Telling Stories of Social Entrepreneurs

I saw things differently. I saw an innovative idea brought to bear against a market inefficiency—wasn’t that the same concept we glorified in Apple, Dell and (in those days) dotcoms? I saw a “first”—a company with a new product, a new business model and a unique vision. And I saw “great copy” —compelling stories about lives transformed, about the nature of human dignity. (While I was visiting Freeplay’s factories in Cape Town, the company had to hire an attendant to hang out at the bus stop across the street. It seemed that when the factory’s blind employees were dropped there, if they couldn’t find someone to escort them across the busy highway, they simply darted out in front of the speeding cars, causing more than a few traffic pile-ups. They didn’t want to be late for work that had given them a renewed sense of self-worth.) My editor rejected the story four or five times, but I just wouldn’t stop nagging. I think he finally approved it just to shut me up.

Five years later, one of my colleagues at Fast Company forwarded me an email from a reader who’d written to say that after she read the story about Freeplay, she’d quit her job, gotten an MBA and started a second career aimed at using business as a vehicle for social change. She’d become the director of marketing for a cooperative of family-owned dairies in New England. Publishing newsworthy stories that provoke readers to action: that’s pretty much a text-book definition of one of the roles of journalists in society. So from that perspective, I feel like writing about social entrepreneurs is nothing special. I’m just doing my job.

Unfortunately, many of my colleagues in the field don’t agree. Here’s an unscientific analysis: In the last ten years the word “microcredit” has appeared in 57 stories in The New York Times. Of those stories, 21 are letters or opinion pieces from readers or experts. Weed out the correction notices and articles in which microcredit is a mere mention, and that leaves just 19 stories. In ten years. Does that seem like an adequate amount of coverage for a worldwide phenomenon that has so far lifted 30 million people out of poverty? Clearly not.

I’ve had editors joke that since I started writing about social entrepreneurs, I’m on the “Mother Teresa beat.”

Why do the stories of social entrepreneurs get little attention in mainstream media? There are myriad reasons. But one of the most powerful is this: journalists fear they will lose credibility with their peers if they write “soft” stories. When asked in a July 2002 poll done by The Pew Research Center for the People and the Press to explain why newsworthy stories are overlooked, almost half of the journalists responding cited fear of embarrassment or potential career damage as a factor. That’s something I’ve experienced personally; I’ve had editors joke that since I started writing about social entrepreneurs, I’m on the “Mother Teresa beat.” In journalistic circles, that is not a compliment.

But journalists’ collective cynicism and neglect of social change are catching up with us as an industry. That same Pew study found that 58% of Americans believe that the press gets in the way of society solving its problems; 55% believe that journalists don’t care about the people or topics they report on. We are clearly reaping what we sow in terms of our credibility.

So, another reason that I write about social entrepreneurs is to shift the perspectives of my peers. I’m working to show fellow journalists that reporting on social change can be an investigative, rigorous process that yields stories that matter to readers. That’s the thinking behind the annual special issue of Fast Company that I helped conceive and launch, The Social Capitalist Awards. A team of writers from the magazine work with consultants from Monitor Group in Boston to evaluate more than 100 social entrepreneurial organizations to pick the best organizations in terms of Social Impact, Sustainability, Innovation, Entrepreneurship and Growth. The point is that these social entrepreneurs are worth reading about because they are efficient, effective businesses—quantifiably so.

But there’s another reason that I write about social entrepreneurs, perhaps the most important one. I’m often overwhelmed by the stream of negativity in the mainstream news. Most of the information supports public discourse that is merely a downward spiraling conversation: schools are declining, companies are corrupt, world health is worsening, government is failing. These are all truths. But they are not the only truths; unchecked by other stories, they can create a view of the world that is distorted and unreal. Additionally, they are not the only data points that an informed citizenry needs to participate responsibly in the civic arena. Readers need stories of possibility, of solutions that work, of people that inspire—not so they can all feel good, but so that they can choose to act based on a balanced view of the world, one that includes hope.

Once I saw the kind of tremendous hope that social entrepreneurs bring to the world, I couldn’t not write about them.

Cheryl Dahle (cdahle@sbcglobal.net) is a freelance journalist and social enterprise consultant based in San Francisco. She writes for Fast Company, The New York Times, and is the founder of The Media Leadership Project.

DISCUSSION QUESTIONS:

1] What are your experiences of interacting with the media?

2] What do you think of media coverage of social entrepreneurship?

3] How crucial is media coverage to the success of social entrepreneurship ventures?

cdahle - Sep 14, 2004 5:53 pm (#1 Total: 20)
Cheryl Dahle, Origo Inc.


Looking forward to fielding your comments and questions.

Roy King III - Sep 14, 2004 6:04 pm (#2 Total: 20)
Social Enterprise Group


To paraphrase David Bornstein, "there are more social entrepreneurs in the world than terrorists, but you wouldn't know it from reading the newspaper or watching the news."

I feel the Media (to generalize) has done a terrible job reporting this growing trend of social entrepreneurship. It's a global phenomenon that affects the lives of hundreds of millions of people, yet gets less attention than Britney's latest outfit. As a society we need useful information from our news sources and not the "fair and balanced" propaganda that's currently being rammed down our throats.

The term I'm floating around is "Good news we can use". This doesn't mean I want lots of fluffy, feel-good stories about how cute puppies are. A lot of hear about what other people are doing to bring together social consciousness with business acumen, they don't feel there is a viable alternative. Until we see more examples of what is really possible, most people are going to be too afraid to make the jump to living by their values. I feel getting mainstream media coverage of this area is needed to acheive a real tipping point in the way society operates.

On a related topic, Tom Munnecke recently had this on his blog:

Negative Media Misreporting Science
http://www.munnecke.com/blog/archives/2004_08.html#000187
---------------------------------------------------------

I position Martin Seligman just below hero status in terms of someone making a difference in science and academia. He has done an amazing job turning around an entire academic discipline, in just a few short years, and has done so using the best of what science has to offer. So, it is alarming to see his story about negative media and misreporting Science at the New York Times:

"There are media dedicated to the dividends of darkness that both reflect a cultural bias toward despair and simultaneously shape it. They are enormously influential, and if you wonder why our young people are in the midst of an epidemic of depression and meaninglessness in the presence of unprecedented wealth, education, and opportunity, you might start with what they read in the New York Times."
...
 

jack - Sep 14, 2004 7:25 pm (#3 Total: 20)
Inspire Foundation


Further to the Seligman reference and at the risk of mounting a soapbox, when you mobilise around fear and anxiety - a relatively easy thing to do - you get powerful short term results which is always seductive and inevitably attractive to politicans operating on short electoral cycles. It's also good copy for journalists who are looking to record stories of clash/conflict.

Building for the long term requires vision, a strong belief in our better natures, and an impatient patience - you go as fast as you can in a skilful and adaptive way while not being deterred by setbacks.

Our work with young people in Australia (and I don't think we Australians are unique in this) tells us time and time again that when given the right opportunity in the right way young people can move beyond depression and meaninglessness - in fact they are crying out to do so.

It is through knowing/believing that people are capable of better things that we are inspired to undertake the hard slog that rarely gets covered in the mainstream media. I'm not sure how likely the media coverage is to change, and if it does that's a bonus, but right action with right motivation always leads to right results even if it takes a painfully long time to manifest! And it is this belief which keeps me (us) going. Keep the faith. Thanks, Jack

hklaird - Sep 15, 2004 8:29 pm (#4 Total: 20)
Director of Marketing & PR, Junior Achievement of Georgia


Hi Cheryl,

I began reading Fast Company because of the Social Capitalist Awards and its coverage of social entrepreneurial endeavors. I have been incredibly inspired by the myriad, brave organizations employing creative approaches to complex issues. I would love to see more pages and publications dedicated to this worthy topic. I enjoyed David Bornstein's recent book and also often read Stanford Business School's Social Innovation Review. Do other folks have suggestions for any other publications out there that feature and explore social entrepreneurs and their work?

Also, having worked in the nonprofit sector for a number of years, like most of us, I have come across many resourceful programs and agencies doing inspiring, creative, unique work. Any ideas for how to publicize their work, stories and lessons learned? Certainly forums such as the Social Edge are perfect vehicles, but I am also interested in how we can make these stories more mainstream.

Thanks again, Cheryl, for all the work you have done to tell these stories. I think they are such important learning tools and sources for inspiring and re-energizing ourselves!

Cheers, Heather

Terry Nagel - Sep 16, 2004 1:40 pm (#5 Total: 20)
Skoll Foundation


Part of the challenge in interesting the media to cover social entrepreneurship is making the concept understandable. There are many definitions of "social entrepreneur" floating around. Which one do you use?

dlgines - Sep 16, 2004 7:21 pm (#6 Total: 20)
Choice Humanitarian


In general, I believe the media has sold out for winning and for money with little concern for who may be hurt or helped by the choice of stories and the slant taken on these stories. So I especially appreciate journalists like Cheryl and applaud what she is doing. I do believe the "good news" is important and perhaps because of it's scarcity, it is even more noticeable. I also believe that you have much more "power to influence others" when you are for something good and positive than when you attack the negative. And yes, I know that my comment about the media selling out for winning and money was negative.

I have enjoyed all the postings and hope to see many more on this topic.

Thanks to all, Duane

cdahle - Sep 16, 2004 8:01 pm (#7 Total: 20)
Cheryl Dahle, Origo Inc.


I'm not actually fond of using the term at all, as it does have many definitions -- one of the reasons why Fast Company opted to call its award the Social Capitalist award. Personally, what I'm looking for in companies/individuals to cover are two things: innovation and an entrepreneurial approach. What new idea or business model is the person bringing to bear? How are they being more effective and ingenius about trying to SOLVE a social problem and think systemically -- not just meet a need. (Don't get me wrong. Meeting needs with services is a noble thing. I just don't consider it social entrepreneurship.

cdahle - Sep 16, 2004 8:03 pm (#8 Total: 20)
Cheryl Dahle, Origo Inc.


Thanks for the feedback. If I might be so bold to suggest -- the decision makers at Fast Company need to know that readers like you subscribe and buy the magazine because of that type of coverage. If you get a chance, let them know that at loop@fastcompany.com

As far as other publications, there is a new online magazine starting up that covers social enterprise -- non-profits that have earned income. It is due to go up in October and is very lessons-oriented, though is a bit narrower in focus than the broad field of social entrepreneurship. You can find it at www.serporter.com

cdahle - Sep 16, 2004 8:15 pm (#9 Total: 20)
Cheryl Dahle, Origo Inc.


I think part of what I'm trying to start with this piece is a more open and constructive dialogue about coverage -- with an individual journalist and individuals who read the piece. I think we journalists don't do enough to engage with the public and as a result have no one to blame but ourselves when we're seen as acting as a hegemonic "media" collective. I agree that there are lots of signs that the profession is headed in the wrong direction -- OutFoxed, more corporate ownership, shrinking budgets for editorial -- but when I talk to INDIVIDUAL journalists, they are concerned about these things, too. Many of them became reporters because they gave a damn and wanted to contribute. So, this is a long way of posing the question -- if journalists who were willing to admit that they care -- about the profession, about their impact on the world -- were to band together -- what kind of powerful impact might that have on the world?

cdahle - Sep 16, 2004 8:24 pm (#10 Total: 20)
Cheryl Dahle, Origo Inc.


I firmly believe that within the next few years, I will go from having a tough time finding a "market" on the publication side for stories on social entrepreneurship, to a world where I'll have plenty of competition from other reporters.

I believe that both because people like you continue to produce amazing results worth writing about -- and because readers and consumers of media are in open revolt. Reading Paul Ray's analysis of Cultural Creatives, talking to Fast Company readers, I do think there is a groundswell of folks out there who really want to read about social change. It's, as you say, only a matter of time.

Chad Sclove - Sep 19, 2004 12:10 pm (#11 Total: 20)
Common Good Ventures


Per discussion on how hard it is to precisely define social entrepreneurship, I'd guess that journalists can have a hard time figuring out how to cover a piece on a social entrepreneur when it's difficult to tell exactly what kind of story it is. Again, I don't know since I am not in the field myself, but I am guessing that even journalists who care about these issues still have reader niches to fill and story pitches to make to editors. Stories of social entrepreneurs, on the surface, don't seem as fit for the business page as the other business stories, especially keeping readers' desires in minds. On the other hand, there are often other, more compelling anecdotes that can be found for the "charity" page, especially when social entrepreneurs are working towards gradual and long-term solutions to things (in contrast with more immediate strategies. This leads me to guess one of two things need to happen. One, there needs to be a "space" in publications created for stories that span different categories like these, but the audience needs to be identified for that to make sense commercially, and I'm not sure who that is on a mass scale. Two, stories of social entrepreneurs need to be classified as tales of business or tales of charity, and not focus on the other. From my experience at Common Good Ventures - a venture philanthropist in Maine - I believe that there is material in social entrepreneurs' experiences that is every bit as compelling as private sector learnings in the business realm, and that there are also personal anecdotes as touching as anything else going on. To please the reader interested in only one of these two though, it can be important not to dilute the impact with the other message (the McKinsey quartely does a good job of covering the social sector from a business perspective), and this can be hard for journalists and social entrepreneurs who want to tell the whole story. Plus, this is a very valid concern, as I think we all see the need to represent the entirety of this movement. Also, my comments above don't cover what is perhaps the most important part and the middle ground between the business and the touching stories, and that is the information and numbers on aggregate social impact and results being achieved. Any thoughts on how to tackle these issues? -Chad Sclove

tomwhite - Sep 20, 2004 2:18 pm (#12 Total: 20)
Social Enterprise Reporter


In working on the upcoming launch of the Social Enterprise Reporter--thanks, Cheryl, for the mention/link in msg 8--I've been reading up on public/civic journalism. Here are a few links that readers might find useful for creating their own community-based newsfeeds:

Public Journalism Network: www.pjnet.org J-Lab Institute for Interactive Journalism: www.j-lab.org SJ Mercury columnist Dan Gillmor's new book on grassroots journalism: wethemedia.oreilly.com

J-Lab sponsors the Batten Awards for Innovations in Journalism showcasing inventive ideas – from telling multiple sides of a story, to crafting visual narratives, to creating novel ways for people to interact with the news. The 2004 grand prize went to our SF Bay Area based public TV station KQED!

I'm expect that the Social Enterprise Reporter will incorporate some of these interactive qualities and I encourage readers of this forum to submit ideas to me for possible stories and features.

Holly Crane - Sep 21, 2004 6:48 am (#13 Total: 20)
Career and Business Coach working with those who want to make a difference and a living


Hi Cheryl,

I agree this area is definitely growing - both in interested readers and interested writers. One of my recent clients has been moving from her current field of journalism to this sort of area, and has been looking out for others working in this field - I've sent her the link...

Best, Holly

cdahle - Sep 21, 2004 10:10 am (#14 Total: 20)
Cheryl Dahle, Origo Inc.


Definitely have her email me, too. I'm always on the lookout for co-conspirators.

cdahle - Sep 21, 2004 10:53 am (#15 Total: 20)
Cheryl Dahle, Origo Inc.


There’s a lot to respond to in here.

You’re dead on about social entrepreneurship falling between the “cracks” of the topics and beats that journalists look to cover. That being said, I think as a profession, we tend to be pretty lazy and disregard ideas that don’t fit neatly into our pre-defined buckets of content.

I think if a journalist is creative and listening well, then he/she can find plenty of compelling business lessons and ideas in the world of social entrepreneurship. And while I think journalists don’t invest enough attention in covering stories that involve some complexity (such as long term systemic change in social systems) for those who DO make the time, there are plenty of compelling anecdotes to be mined.

But again, you’re right that the solution has to be better one than imploring journalists to dig deeper. I would love to see a day when all newspapers had a charity/non-profit page just as they all have sports pages. I would love to see the institutionalization of a beat like “social change.” It wasn’t too many years ago that few newsrooms had an “environment” beat. These days it’s common. Those sorts of shifts in the newsgathering structure tend to happen for two reasons 1) individual journalists who are toatlly passionate about a topic area persuade an editor to start a new beat (this is nearly an imposible sell in difficult economic times – take a look at how thin your magazines are these days – the advertising market is NOT in recovery); or 2) a proliferation of “official” insitutions that generate newsworthy action to legitimize the coverage. Journalists follow official sources – one reason why social entrepreneurships doesn’t get covered is that there is no centralized government entity churning out press releases – it is a movement of individuals and small, unconnected organizations. Some of the microcrdit stories that I refer to in my piece were written only as a result of controversy and discussion by international bodies like the U.N., government debate over policy – an “official context.” That’s honestly why it REALLY MATTERS that the field get organized enough to start tracking figures on itself, to aggregate the myriad voices to call attention to the size of the movement. Do you know how hard it is to sell a story about social entrepreneurship when I can’t say how many social entrepreneurs there are in the world?

Which brings us to the other bit you mentioned, tracking the social impacts. In my experience, facts and figures on social impact TRULY, TRULY help sell a story to journalists. While I see a lot of organizations working hard to quantify what they do – and basically invent a whole new way of measuring, there are still plenty of SEs who don’t measure enough, or who don’t measure what matters.

Finally, to your point about commercial viability. THAT is the most important question. If publishers (the business side of the equation—separate fromt the edit side) believed that people would buy content like this, there would be more space freed up. So far, there hasn’t been a proof-of-concept in that way. Utne reader is struggling, several magazines that have tried to cover this stuff have failed. We have yet to find one advertiser for our Fast Company Social Capitalist awards issue. There are myriad reasons for the lack of commercial success so far of this type of content. But I would say that one thing that needs to happen is that media consumers need to become more proactive and vote more consistently with their pocketbooks. Go buy Ode magazine, email Fast Company and tell them that it matters to you that they cover social entrepreneurs. The fight can’t be won if it’s only waged on the editorial side of the equation – the business side of publications has to play a part as well.

cdahle - Sep 21, 2004 10:58 am (#16 Total: 20)
Cheryl Dahle, Origo Inc.


These are great sites, Tom. I am hopeful that the proliferation of blogging and other forms of decentralized reporting will drive change within the established media, too. It saddens me how many thoughtful, intelligent people I know who have just completely written off all mainstream coverage as unsalvageable. I think it has to be salvaged. The difference in platform and reach of a blogger, versus a New York Times reporter is still huge. And, though the Internet is powerful, that will remain true for a while. We have to fix the system. Not just abandon it.

Village - Sep 22, 2004 3:42 pm (#17 Total: 20)
Village Enterprise Fund


--Your Message Here-- Cheryl, I'm a development director for Village Enterprise Fund, a small social entrepreneurship organization in San Carlos, CA. We start microbusinesses in Africa. I think the strength, and the challenge, of what we do is the fusion between creating social value in tandem with economic change. Therein lies the power - we create a quantifiable impact and also contribute to social equity. Our website is www.villageef.org if you'd like to take a look. Another partner organization, Approtec (www.approtec.org) which makes affordable water pumps, seed oil presses, other technologies for 2nd world and developing country use, has made a profound impact on the economy of Kenya.

I think you're ahead of the curve journalistically, a challenging position but one of real potential.

In terms of our impact, we are probably a pinprick on an elephant's behind, as a tiny organization. But, I'd rather contribute a little good, then none!

Barbara Lamb Hall Village Enterprise Fund

cdahle - Sep 27, 2004 7:25 am (#18 Total: 20)
Cheryl Dahle, Origo Inc.


Barbara --

Thanks for telling me about your organization. I agree that some of the most powerful models out there in the realm of SE marshall economic forces. Approtec has definitely been on our radar at Fast Co.

I do have to say that I don't consider my editor's metaphor to be accurate. He was talking size -- as in revenues. The "returns" of organizations like yours is primarily non-financial and while some of it can be quantified, much of it cannot. But in my book, any impact measured in lives changed, lives saved or communities revitalized, is never, ever small.

Studancer - Nov 2, 2004 11:30 am (#19 Total: 20)
Shanti, UCSF, City of San Francisco, SF Publicity


--Your Message Here-- any word on when or if Serporter will surface?

Thanks,

Stu Smith Stu@tinpanalley.org

Trilok Kumar Jain - Dec 9, 2005 12:56 pm (#20 Total: 20)
Professor and Researcher (Social Entrepreneurship)

Innovators are at grass root level. They are without resources. They have ideas to transform the society. They need support to become social entrepreneurs. Read the enclosed article (which is a true story, the name of the innovator is Late Mr. Y.K. Rawal).

I shall be glad to share my other researches.

Trilok Kumar Jain

Attachments:

THE INNOVATIVE TEACHER.doc (23 KB)