Last Sunday, Malcolm Gladwell and Adam Gopnik “faced off on the importance and relevance of a Canadian identity in the world.” I missed the event (and the CBC broadcast), but MacLeans uploaded clips here.
Gladwell asserted that as far as Canada on the world stage is concerned, “small is useful” – by being small, Canada is unencumbered, can be mean (in a nice way) and can thrive in a networked world. Gopnik countered that Canada, in fact, IS very much encumbered - by its history and by a commitment to make that history work in a civic manner. Rather than “small is beautiful” Gopnik’s preferred slogan is “plural is possible.” What Canada has going for it is Notion-hood – a collective identity based on the ideals of common sense, tolerance and co-existence. Ideals that the world of nations is only beginning to learn to grasp and aspire for.
All in all, very interesting. The last clip also shows more heavy-hitters such as Ralston Saul, Coupland, et al. weighing-in.
So what does this have to do with my day-job? How does this debate help us craft communications for chocolate? credit cards? cars?
Planners are perennially in search of the sweet spot. That nugget of truth about people that would make them stop and *pay* attention to our message. We need to understand universal truths – but also, and perhaps more importantly, Canadian truths. A tough challenge, but it’s what we listen for everyday – whether in the august halls of academia, in dark backrooms of focus group facilities, or in somebody’s kitchen.
Personally, what I found most interesting was how Gopnik tried to tie his whole argument together. "Citizenship... has to be tangible, immediate, local, collective." Following that criteria, Gopnik pinpointed the roots of Canadian identity: hockey (no surprise there) and the CBC. That was an eye-opener. A media company? But of course. After all, as Arthur Miller said, a good newspaper (or broadcasting company, for that matter) is like a nation having a conversation with itself.
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