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Communications committee reviews strategy, backs quick pilot and seeks volunteers
Summary
The communications committee reviewed a three-part package from Commissioner Alex Johnson (strategy, social media schedule, topic list), agreed to begin with a strategy document, endorsed a quick pilot launch and sought 2–3 commissioner content captains; members also recommended targeting tribes and state legislators and tracking performance metrics.
The communications committee of the Columbia River Gorge Commission reviewed draft materials from absent Commissioner Alex Johnson and signaled support for moving quickly from strategy to a pilot launch.
"Let's just chunk through it and see. I don't want to wordsmith," Chair Amy Weisfeld said, urging commissioners to focus first on agreeing the plan's purpose, goals and audience rather than debating phrasing.
Commissioners confirmed they received three documents — a communications strategy, a social media schedule and a list of topics for posts — and agreed to start by approving purpose and goals and refining audience lists. Commissioner Valerie Fowler urged that tribes not be labeled "non landowner stakeholders," calling tribes government partners, and recommended adding state legislators as a primary audience so they understand the commission's funding needs: "In order to be funded, the legislators need to understand what it is we do, and it's not a music festival," Fowler said.
The committee discussed channels and cadence. Chair Weisfeld and staff supported adding email marketing as a channel for pushing updates to subscribers; Weisfeld suggested a biannual newsletter as a realistic starting cadence. Commissioners also emphasized in-person community outreach: staff reported attending many local meetings and noted those events are valuable for clarifying technical rules.
Commissioner Roger Nichols recommended not overlooking traditional media and offered to help write material: "I write for 2 newspapers and radio stations in the gorge, and I can be helpful in that," Nichols said. Commissioners discussed governance items including archiving and staff time required to produce social content, and staff said they will track staff-hours to refine resource estimates.
On implementation, members endorsed a quick pilot launch (a target of one to two months was mentioned) and asked for an additional meeting to focus on legislative outreach in the coming weeks. The committee asked staff to produce a redlined draft showing the meeting additions so Commissioner Johnson can see proposed changes.
Members also solicited 2–3 commissioner volunteers to serve as content captains for evergreen and responsive posts; Roger Nichols and the chair volunteered to help. The committee closed with agreement to continue revising the materials, hold a legislative-focused meeting before the next communications committee session, and return a next draft for further comment.
