In case you missed it, Nova Scotia has received quite a bit of publicity lately.
Ellen Page has done more to put Nova Scotia on the map in the past 10 days than the tourism industry has done in the last 10 years.
Jim Meek – Chronicle Herald
Thanks to David Letterman, Ellen Page, Nova Scotia Premier Rodney MacDonald’s Top Ten List and YouTube, approximately 100,000 people have discovered Nova Scotia and help it “come to life” online.
Ellen Page, the breakout actress from Halifax, Nova Scotia recently appeared on The Late Show with David Letterman. Page is perhaps best known for her role in the film Juno, where she plays a pregnant working-class teenager.
During the interview with Page, Letterman says he would like to visit Nova Scotia one day.
One week later, Nova Scotia Premier Premier Rodney MacDonald, in response to Letterman’s comments, releases a video – Top 10 Reasons Why David Letterman Should Visit Nova Scotia.
The video was slick and well done but as IssmatBlog points out, “why did the premier’s office go through all the motions to produce a great viral video but neglect to broadcast it?”
The Nova Scotia government posted the Premier’s video online on NovaScotiaLife but failed to post it on YouTube. Since IssmatBlog posted the video on YouTube three days ago, the video has been viewed over 14,000 times.
Jim Meek has written about Ellen Page and the importance of online videos and he reluctantly concedes, “I admit that popular culture counts.”
Popular culture does count and it appears that some governments are starting to understand this.
Nova Scotia produced a simple and slick top ten list video with a remarkable turn around time of one week. Too Bad they forgot to post it to YouTube.
Newfoundland and Labrador Premier Danny Williams has lead the way by jumping in a 4X4 with Rick Mercer and appearing on This Hour Has 22 Minutes.
Sharing videos online and appealing to popular culture has changed the way we think about things – even politicians.
I'm a dad, raconteur, scallywag and drinker of strong black coffee.
