Chicago Tribune journalist Jeremy Gorner used to cover crime in the Windy City. Most recently, he became the newspaper’s Statehouse reporter. There, he sometimes gets the chance to cover agriculture, explaining what motivates people like Jerry Costello instead of John Wayne Gacy.

But despite the switch, newsworthiness is still his metric. When Gorner ponders his readers’ interests, it comes down to one critical point: How does agriculture — or anything, for that matter — affect them?

And right now, their focus is squarely on inflation.

“Readers are interested in the price of food,” Gorner told a group of curious agricultural journalists and communications professionals gathered for a professional development meeting last week in Springfield, Ill. “They want to know about the supply shortage. That’s what they care about.”

For agriculture, that interest is a gift. For this moment at least, urban Illinoisans don’t have to be convinced agriculture is a priority. Common ground abounds: You’re feeling the pinch, they’re feeling the pinch. You’re paying more, they’re paying more. Your costs are soaring, so are theirs. The potential for empathy is palpable.

This opens the door to a timely and newsworthy opportunity to tell your story. For example, give specifics about how inflation and supply chain problems are affecting you and your neighbors, too. Make comparisons between specific input costs a year ago and now. Tell people about a part that broke, how you had to drive three hours to find a replacement, and when you got there it was sold out.

Explain how you’re dealing with the whole mess. And finally, offer hope. Tell your audience how you plan to emerge a winner.

Looking for hope

That doesn’t mean sugarcoat the truth. But in communications, positivity is a trend. At the same gathering where Gorner spoke, social media marketing guru Duncan Alney of Firebelly Marketing noted audiences have “pandemic drudgery hangover.” They want something upbeat but still real.

There’s a challenge. Honestly, how do you make the likes of inflated fertilizer costs and frustrating machinery delays sound good?

Here’s an approach: Use photos and video to show how you’ve improvised. Like you, urban people are also duct-taping things together and scraping by until costs come back to Earth. Even if they can afford to buy something new, it’s out of stock. Their experience is your experience.

So imagine how inspired they could be, learning that pivoting is part of your DNA. And clearly, through generations, you’ve persevered.

Since farming began, the producer’s goal has always been to keep the price of food down. Efficiency is foundational, and inputs help with that drive. Here’s an opportunity to put it all in perspective for the public.

Back to reporter Gorner. He needs stories. He might pick them up by following your Twitter feed, TikTok account or Facebook page, so stay active on those platforms, for sure.

But why make him search for your story? Reporters love to be approached by sources like you who have story ideas that will resonate with their readers, listeners and viewers.

You have that story. It’s a tale about coping with inflation, about how we all need to cooperate to get through to the other side. It’s inspiring and revealing, and it’s real. You share the same pain as some Chicagoan on the 33rd floor of a downtown high-rise. That’s rare, and that’s a story.

Roberts teaches agricultural communications and journalism at the University of Illinois. Email questions to him at [email protected].