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Telling Your Story Through the MediaNotes to CIC Presidents -MESSAGE. What is the message you want people to know about your institution? Your mission statement, which you already have developed, can be an internal document for use by those responsible for getting out the word about your school—media relations, publications, admissions, marketing. Keep in mind, however, that your main mission may not be anything the media is interested in. For example, many editors tell us they don’t want to hear any more about service learning. Your media relations people may be able to find an interesting story in a service learning project that would stand alone. Don’t pressure your public relations people to produce a story about one of your missions if they tell you the media won’t listen. – PRIORITIES. What are the most important messages you want out there? Make them your mantra – we are a low-cost school, we prepare you for technology in the workplace, we give you the foundation to succeed etc. Keep in mind, however, that some of these messages may be of little or no interest to the media. You need some creative thinking on ways to promote your school’s strengths. – STRATEGY. How do you get those messages out? The President plays a key role here. Once you’ve identified those key messages, tuck them into remarks you make to any audience on campus or off. Have your media relations staff arrange for you to meet the editor of your local newspaper. Don’t go in expecting headlines the next day, but rather as an opportunity to familiarize the newspaper with your mission. You might ask yourself before scheduling an appointment with an editor, "Why would an editor want to talk to me?" "What’s in it for them'?" –THE EMPEROR HAS NO CLOTHES. Some presidents surround themselves with people who agree with them most or all of the time. What you really need is at least one person (and it probably ought to be your public relations person) who can tell you when the emperor has no clothes. That’s probably the toughest job on campus. But you need to have enough respect for your public relations person to let them play devil’s advocate when you’re in a tough situation. How does it look to others? What should be done? You may not always take their advice but you should hear them out. -STEP UP TO THE PLATE. Presidents who are looking for visibility for their institution need to think about speaking out on the issues of the day – even local and regional issues. It gives the president a chance to weigh in on those local issues. If you want to be recognized as a leader, you have to take risks. There’s great concern about offending various audiences – donors, trustees, and lawmakers – but for your institution to have credibility and recognition as a leader in your community, you, as President, often must step into the fray. (At one campus recently, the community recognized the president as someone who could bring together disparate elements. He presided over a community-wide meeting of business, industry and government leaders and discovered many of them had never met. It was a productive day for the community and a terrific coup for the university.) – MEDIA PLAN. Does your school have a media plan? Which media are important to us? How are we going to reach them? What role, as president, should I play? Highlight the work of key faculty – your media relations’ people should be surveying the campus for research and stories that would help the school’s image. Your deans and department heads should be in regular touch with the media relation’s staff, letting them know what’s going on in their area. Often, faculty expertise can be used to plug into the headlines. Experts on major issues being discussed in the news would likely be of interest to media who could then localize a major world or national story. And your institution gets recognized for the quality of its faculty. – OP EDS. Here is an opportunity for you to put your message out there without any filtering by the media. The secret is writing a good op ed – stick with one theme, write clearly, take a position (not, "on the one hand" or "on the other hand"), use factual information to make your case and if there’s a good example of how you’ve solved a problem at your institution, include it. Sometimes, a speech delivered at an alumni function or a convocation can be converted to an op ed. Smaller newspapers like to hear from their community leaders. WORKING WITH YOUR PR PERSON. If you have a good public relations person on your campus, listen to them. If they’re good, they’ve got their ear to the ground, they hear rumblings from the campus and the community. They know what the media is working on. They also know how the media works – deadlines, best time to reach them, what’s most likely to interest the media. If you don’t have a crisis communications plan, delegate your public relations director to draft one. You may never have to use it but if you do, you’l1 be happy you had it in place. And how do you know whether your public relations person is effective? For one thing, they’l1 keep you out of trouble. Second, they'll seek you out when trouble is brewing – you won’t have to go looking for them. They’ll have good ideas. One president told me once that he thought he had a fairly decent PR person – his only problem was figuring which of the guy’s 1,000 ideas every day would work. – RESPOND TO THE MEDIA. Once you give the media the message that you’re willing to talk with them, don’t shut them out. When they call for comment, respond. (If you’re not sure exactly what they’re after or you don’t know the reporter calling, touch base with your public relations person for advice and information.) But don’t leave a reporter hanging. They’re often on deadline and need a quick response. You’d be amazed at how this works the other way – when you’ve got a sensitive situation on campus, you can reach out to them. They’ve got your measure, they’ve learned to trust you and you get the opportunity to put your story before their readers or viewers or listeners. – NOT SOCIAL CHITCHAT. Do remember one thing – a conversation with a reporter is not social chitchat. If you tell them something, it could wind up in print or on the air. Be wary of background sessions and off-the-record sessions with the media. Sometimes it’s not clear when the conversation went off the record and when it came back on. Adapted from a presentation by Frank Dobisky THE OP-ED ARTICLE: HOW TO WRITE IT An effective epinion piece should: · Express your opinions – based on factual, often first-hand information · Focus on one idea · Be timely, controversial but not outrageous · Be personal, if it helps to make your point · Be humorous, provided the topic lends itself to humor · Have a clear editorial viewpoint – come down hard on one side · Provide insight or understanding – educate the reader · Have a to-the-point first paragraph that focuses tightly on the issue · Focus on your position or call to action. Don’t philosophize · Have verve, "fire in the gut" indignation to go with analysis · Have your arguments supported by facts to make the case · Not ramble or unfold slowly, like an essay · Use simple, powerful, direct language · Emphasize small words, vigorous verbs, not adjectives, adverbs · Avoid cliches, jargon · Be typed, double-spaced and 800 words or less · Be written for a general audience Courtesy of Dobisky Associates, Media Relations for Higher Education
THE OP ED ARTICLE: HOW TO MARKET IT Notes to CIC Presidents 1. Discuss the topic with someone in your public relations office to help you answer the question: Can they market what you write? Is your message targeted to a specific audience? If it's tied to the headlines, timing may be critical. 2. Show the finished piece to the person in public relations. 3. Don't be offended if the piece is rewritten or edited. Op-ed articles must be aimed at general audiences. Some academic people need to rework their writing when it’s aimed at those with less working knowledge of the subject. (What makes your opinions of interest to the public is your knowledge and fresh approach to the subject.) Remember, the process of submitting the article to op-ed page editors takes time. It must be offered on an exclusive basis to one editor at a time. If that editor rejects it, you move it to the next editor. Allow a reasonable amount of time for the editor to make a decision.
Courtesy of Dobisky Associates, Media Relations for Higher Education
SO, YOU’VE GOT A REPORTER ON THE PHONE.... Some helpful hits in working with the press: · Conversation with a reporter is not social chit chat · Avoid off the record conversations · Don’t lie · Organize your thoughts · Anticipate questions · Don’t panic if reporter doesn’t ask questions quickly after you finish your answer – no need for you to fill a void · Speak clearly, concisely, avoid jargon · Be careful with humor Do NOT speak when angry or emotionally wrought · Do NOT be lulled by a reporter’s "friendly" conversation · Don’t speak in headlines · Be helpful to reporter · Return calls promptly – remember they’re on deadline · If you can’t answer a question, say so, then get answers later · Don’t make insensitive remarks or racial slurs · Shy away from ethnic humor · Be careful of sexual innuendoes · Avoid surprises. Be certain of your facts · Help reporter understand issues
Courtesy of Dobisky Associates, Media Relations for Higher Education
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