Sidelights | Making Hard Things Clear and Important Things Heard: How to Communicate Social Issues in a Relatable Way

Judicial reform advocacy is frequently criticized as "too rigid" or "failing to break out of the echo chamber." Workers across every era are searching for effective channels to communicate with the public.

As part of the lecture series during the "Becoming an Ordinary Person" exhibition, two creators who possess both legal expertise and experience in operating self-media—Attorney Lai Ying-Chen and Attorney Liu Lo-Yi—were invited to share how they continually narrow the distance between the public, the law, and social issues amidst shifting media landscapes, fragmented information, and civic participation.

Attorney Lai Ying-Chen: Steadily Communicating Legal Values in the Era of Information Polarization and Short Videos

Attorney Lai Ying-Chen began by discussing the vote-counting results of recent recall elections, pointing out the vast gap between the election outcomes and the public opinion atmosphere she observed within online communities. This prompted her to reevaluate the limitations of today's communication models. She noted that echo chambers and information polarization are becoming increasingly severe, with many viewpoints circulating only within specific algorithmic circles rather than spreading to broader audiences as imagined. The rise of new platforms like TikTok and Xiaohongshu has further compounded these challenges. Meanwhile, regarding misinformation and internet army operations, Attorney Lai bluntly stated that these problems have "existed for a long time yet remain completely unresolved."

She shared how she attempts to overcome the language barriers of the professional legal circle through current affairs packaging and plain-language expression. However, even after running YouTube for many years, she still faces bottlenecks, especially as long-form videos gradually decline. She has begun experimenting with formats incorporating live-action filming, interviews, and social issues, while making titles and cover designs more engaging to avoid falling into standard legal preaching. Because the true goal should not merely be attracting audiences who already agree with her, but finding ways to make people with opposing views willing to click on videos—such as using language the other side can better understand to set up an hook at the beginning of a video when discussing the amendment of laws against child abuse, which is one such method.

Nevertheless, Attorney Lai also candidly admitted that the communication of legal issues requires argumentation and exposition, which is difficult to present within a dozen seconds of a short video, potentially reducing things to a direct answer without going through a process of critical thinking. Therefore, she chooses to supplement with different media, such as finding more concise concepts packaged in other ways; her "Cooking and Talking Law" segment is one such attempt. Another approach is podcasts, which allow plenty of time to elaborate slowly and make the content vivid and interesting. Regarding how to break through algorithms, Attorney Lai expressed that it is truly difficult, and she has gradually discovered that facing people directly in person may be more useful than "air combat" online.

Furthermore, when discussing how to face internet armies and fake news, Attorney Lai pointed out that the very first thing everyone must do is verify and fact-check. If online comments display an extreme, fierce tone that feels different from talking to real people around you, they are very likely fake accounts or narrative-steering operations. Such operations often mix truth with falsehood, and their purpose is not necessarily to change others' stances, but rather to provoke conflict, affect those working earnestly and those striving for social progress, and make them disheartened. Therefore, Attorney Lai called on everyone that in the era of self-media, everyone is a part of the online ecosystem. Beyond casually blocking and reporting, individuals can also like and comment on causes they agree with during daily life, letting public advocates know that "they are not fighting alone."

Attorney Liu Lo-Yi: Before an Issue Can Be "Seen," One Must First Understand "How It Can Be Accepted"

Attorney Liu Lo-Yi started from his own acute observational skills, recounting how he has been adept at capturing core messages through body language and environment since childhood, possessing a talent for grasping main audiences and conversational atmospheres. He recalled that he began communicating social issues back in high school, when he would print out issues and post them on bulletin boards, quickly discovering that an issue being "seen" by people and being "absorbed" by people are two different things, and that building interpersonal connections and accumulating trust is actually more important than "preaching reasoning."

Following the 2018 referendums, Attorney Liu realized that to expand platform operations, diversifying narrative formats was necessary to attract more public attention to issues. A single issue must be paired with multiple channels to be effectively disseminated, and each platform possesses its own grammar and audience habits. Taking podcasts as listeners' preference, people click in to listen not necessarily because of a specific issue, but out of habit toward the show, the person, the degree of professionalism or entertainment, or political stance. Taiwanese society has long exhibited considerable resistance toward "having a stance," but in reality, social issues and legal values require a stance in order to be propagated. Bravely expressing political stances does not conflict with explaining the law; what conflicts are people viewing things through filtered lenses.

Regarding social media graphics and text media, unlike podcasts, they require culling the superfluous and retaining the essential. According to scientific research, when people look at an article or a short video, they possess an average of only 0.25 seconds of patience before deciding whether to keep watching. This reality forces creators to consider how to attract people to stay and watch within the shortest possible time. For example, designing a video title like: "I didn't kill him; why won't the prison let me read my mail?"—such emotionally evocative methods are necessary to motivate people to "click and watch."