When the idea of space travel was first gaining popularity, authors such as Roald Dahl featured space adventures in their writings. Roald Dahl's Charlie and the Great Glass Elevator, published in the US in 1972, depicts the adventure that Willy Wonka, Charlie and his family take into space. They link to a space hotel that is newly launched by the United States government. This story uses the frames of adventure and nationalism to make space travel appealing to the reader. Framing is the way an author depicts information to appeal to a certain group. In this instance, the author would be writing for an audience that is adventurous and has a passion for it's country. The adventure frame is accomplished by describing the wonders of space and the encounter of extraterrestrials called "vermicious knids," which are depicted in the image above. Nationalism is used as a frame by saying that the United States were the country that launched the space hotel, giving the impression that the US has a more superior space program (OnRead.com).
Another example of how space travel was further expressed to the public through sources of media is the film From Earth to the Moon, which was adapted from the Jules Verne novel. The film was produced in 1958 and told the story of a man who discovers a new explosive and another man who claims he has invented the strongest material. When the explosive melts the material, it creates a lightweight ceramic that is very strong. From this, the two men make a space shuttle and fly to the moon. This film also used the frame of adventure as well as a frame of discovery by depicting a story of two men finding a way to travel to uncharted territory. The men in the story are from the United States of America; therefore, it also plays into the frame of nationalism (Wikipedia 2011). If anyone is interested in watching the film, it can be found on YouTube here.
The third type of publication used to inform the public of the space program was a magazine called Collier's Magazine. It was know for investigative journalism and social reform-seeking values and at the peak of its production was read by 2.8 million readers worldwide. This magazine provided the general public with "fiction, fact, sensation, wit, humor, and news." This reminds me of the four organ communication model. This model states that communication can occur in three different organs of the body, the head for logic, the heart for emotions, the gut for humor, and the lower organs for sexuality. This also may be the reason that the publication reached so many readers. It not only interested intellectuals, but it also engaged people with the gut and the lower organs using humor, wit, and sensation (Collier's 2011).
So to recap, in the past, frames of adventure and nationalism were used along with the four organ model to effectively communicate the wonder of space travel. However, I don't believe that these methods will be very useful at this time to obtain more support for space travel. This is because nowadays it seems that while it is exciting to think that one day commercial space travel may be accomplished, it is well known that it is probably not in the near future. Therefore, with all the present problems at hand for the US, the public may find it difficult to support something so expensive just because it has an astonishing future.
References
Collier’s (2011). Collier’s. Retrieved from
OnRead.com. Charlie and the Great Glass Elevator. Retrieved from http://www.onread.com/book/Charlie-and-the-great-glass-elevator-191279/
Wikipedia (2011). From Earth to the Moon. Retrieved from http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/From_the_Earth_to_the_Moon
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