For those who have not heard of it before, we’ve been inspired by the old Dear Doctor postcards to organize a campaign to spread the word about Postcrossing in the media of countries with relatively few postcrossers.
Every few months, we pick a new country, investigate the media outlets there and then together send lots of postcards to those newspapers, radio or TV stations to let journalists know about the Postcrossing. The idea is to make them intrigued and curious enough to check out the website and then write/report on it!
Postcrossers have voted, and so the next country we’re doing on the Dear Journalist challenge is the Faroe Islands! They’re an archipelago in the Northern Atlantic, halfway between Norway and Iceland. While technically a part of Denmark, they’ve been self-governing for over 70 years and have their own language and customs. There are so many cool things to see and do there… but only 10 postcrossers!
So your mission, should you choose to accept it, is to first help us find media contacts in the Faroe Islands, and then send some postcards to unsuspecting journalists, to spread the word about Postcrossing by inviting them to write about the project!
I’m going to make the post after this one a wiki, so everyone can edit it to add new media contacts, and also add a little tick sign next to the media which you’ve sent postcards to (so we can all more or less keep track).
Leave a comment below as well when you do send out your postcards — that way, we can cheer each other along!
Isn’t it nice to receive a postcard from a far away land?
This is why I joined Postcrossing – a community of postcard enthusiasts keeping in touch through traditional mail and filling each other’s mailboxes with smiles. There are lots of us around the world and some in Norway too!
Get in touch if you’d like to talk to some local postcrossers there, so they can tell you the story of how the world comes to their mailboxes in times of social isolation!
I would suggest asking someone local to come up with two or three places to send the cards, so it can be a true collective effort. If each organisation only get 1 card they’ll probably just ignore it. If they get several, maybe they’ll react.
I am curious about the measures for success here. Obviously, you can see if the number of postcrossers rises, but is there any mechanism in place to determine whether the media outlet(s) chosen actually publish a story? I wonder if we wouldn’t have more success with this if it were also tracked/sponsored/monitored by a local postcrosser. Just one idea.
I will be happy to participate in the Dear Journalist Challenge,
and will send a postcard to every journalist’s address
you provided. Thanks!
A Happy Postcrosser,
Roxanne
I won’t be participating in the Faroe Island challenge, because if I did, I’d have to write:
Dear journalist, why’d you guys have to kill 1,400 dolphins in one day? Was it really necessary?
I’m afraid of what “new hobbies” they might come up with. Puffin hunting, perhaps? Maybe I’ll write anyway; I’ve never sent a card to the Faroe Islands before.
I find it not fair to blame every resident at the area for this event… I’m sure there are many Faroe Islanders who find this event just as bad as you do.
Yes, I know, I was being rhetorical. Indeed, the article that I in fact attached reports: “The scale of the killing…has shocked many locals.” I don’t think I would “blame every resident” when I knew that they were in fact “shocked” at the killings.
I’ve sent postcards about 2 weeks ago to the french consulate which is there (no embassy there, which is in Denmark).
Maybe some expats could be interested in sending postcards too.
And also to their national library.
I will also send to journalists.
This is such a cool idea. I will send some cards, too. But i Think it would be helpful to get in touch with a local, so we will find out of this effort male sense…