1. business and industrial
2. advertising and marketing
3. public relations

Media How-To
Guidebook
Media Alliance
Managing Editor/Writer: Marianne Manilov
San Francisco 1999
Media How-To Guidebook
Managing Editor/Writer: Marianne Manilov
Copy Editor: Heidi Davis
Design & Layout: Ben Clarke
Project Manager/Proofreader: Andrea Buffa
Illustration: Andrés Rojo
Printing: Inkworks
A publication of
Media Alliance
814 Mission Street, Suite 205
San Francisco, CA 94103
(415) 546-6334
[email protected]
www.media-alliance.org
Special thanks to the Wells Fargo Foundation, whose generous
support helped make this book possible.
©1999 Media Alliance. All rights reserved.
Printed on recycled paper in the United States of America.
Media How-To
Guidebook
Media How-To Guidebook
Table of Contents
7
9
Acknowledgments
Introduction
Section I - Short-Term Media Work
13
The Minimum
15
17
18
19
19
Decide on Your Target Audience (Week I First Two Hours)
Which media reach your target audience
What is news and newsworthy?
Be a Media Consumer (Week I Second Two Hours)
How to Pitch a Story (Week I Third Two Hours)
22
23
24
25
25
26
27
28
Begin to Build A Media List (Week II First Two Hours)
Practice Advanced Pitching (Week II Second Two Hours)
Creating media events
Begin to Write a Press Release (Week II Third Two Hours)
Writing the news release
Sample press release #1
Standard news release format
When to release information
29
29
30
Finish Press Release (Week III First Two Hours)
Train Additional Spokespeople (Week III Second Two Hours)
Develop Your Media List (Week III Third Two Hours)
31
31
32
34
35
35
38
39
Send Out Your Press Release (Week IV First Two Hours)
When and how to fax and email
Sample press release #2
Pitch to Reporters (Week IV Second Two Hours)
Continue Pitching; Start Interviewing (Week IV Third Two Hours)
Interviews
Appearing on TV or radio
Getting into print by “packaging” stories
40
40
40
41
Additional Short-term Media Strategies
News tips
Calendar listings
Sample calendar listing
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Media How-To Guidebook
42
44
45
45
47
47
49
49
Photographs
Columns
Opinion pieces
Writing for the op-ed page
Letters to the editor
Editorial board meetings
Internet PR
Flyers and newsletters
Section II - Long-Term Media Work
52
52
54
55
57
57
58
The ABCs of the Press Conference
Setting up the conference
The news conference checklist
Sample press advisory
The news availability
The press kit
Public speaking
62
63
66
The Long-term Media Plan
Sample long-term media plan
Measuring Success
69
70
71
The Media List - Building Relationships
Setting up the media list
Common media contacts
73
73
74
75
77
Free Do-It-Yourself Media
Public access to the airways
Public service announcements (PSAs)
Sample PSA
Public access TV
79
Media Advocacy - Documenting Unfair Coverage
Section III - The Context: Media Ownership
83
6
The National Entertainment State
by Mark Crispin Miller
Media How-To Guidebook
Acknowledgments
This guidebook is a reflection of my experience as an activist and
media advocate for social justice. It is written specifically for
those people who are doing issue-based media, who are activists,
who have little experience, and whose time is limited. It is my
hope that others may find this of use as well.
This guidebook is also a reflection of the vision and direction that
Media Alliance is embarking on for the new millennium: Media
Alliance will measurably increase the ability of marginalized people to create and sustain their own progressive media and participate in existing media. Our focus will be in reaching such communities and addressing their alternative media needs. By operating a top notch training center and fostering key collaborations,
we will increase the number and capacity of the Bay Area’s progressive community, through the growth of alternative and individual media makers.
This vision came from a group of people who came together and
ran for the Media Alliance board of directors in 1998: Penelope
Whitney, René Poitevin, Elizabeth “Betita” Martinez, Judy Appel,
Steve Williams, Andrea Lewis, and especially Van Jones. The
guidebook is meant to reflect Media Alliance’s commitment to an
activist community. Our new vision, however, would have been
nothing without the talented team of organizers who came together to carry it out over the next couple of years. The amazing staff
of Media Alliance in the late ‘90s put the organization onto solid
financial footing and gave it new life and connection to community. These people have been led by Andrea Buffa, an organizer
with a large heart filled with laughter.
I want to thank Jason Salzman, a former colleague of mine in
organizing, for writing Making the News: A guide for Nonprofits
and Activists (Westview Press; 1998). If you want a book that will
help inspire you and go further and deeper than this guidebook, I
recommend it.
Finally, I owe a debt to those people whom I have been trained by
or worked with over the years and to those organizations that
help me make the news when I need help as an activist. Bill
Casey, publisher of The Daily Iowan, Melissa Azulai for teaching
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Media How-To Guidebook
me about the value of exclusives, and Bill Arkin for teaching me
how to use highly technical information while campaigning. Peter
Dykstra of CNN has been an invaluable source of information
time and time again. Michael Shellenberger, Tony Newman, and
others from the original group at Communication Works, a progressive public relations firm in San Francisco, pitched with me
and for me on many occasions and did a great job. There are also
many wonderful reporters and editors whom I believe in and
work with—they give me hope.
I work as a consultant with one of the most talented firms in the
country, We Interrupt This Message. For all the work and training
they provided me with, I owe a debt beyond gratitude to the staff
there, especially Hunter Cutting and Kim Deterline. Kim and
Hunter are the people I look to one hour before having to go on
TV, or whenever an issue for social justice needs to be “re-messaged.” (To re-message is to fix media coverage that is inaccurate
and harmful to the social justice community.) They are, in my
opinion, the best there is at re-messaging.
Finally, I want to acknowledge David Perry who wrote the previous edition of Media Alliance’s Media How-To Guidebook. Part of
what David originally wrote has been edited and placed throughout this guidebook.
-Marianne Manilov, 1999
8
Media How-To Guidebook
Introduction
This book is written to help nonprofit organizations and activists
get media coverage.
Why spend time getting coverage?
Why, when we live with toxic incinerators threatening to locate
in our communities, police brutality, challenges to make enough
money to live on, and when there aren’t enough hours in the day
to get our work done—why should we spend time doing media
outreach and advocacy?
Because it helps. Media coverage helps to get funding from foundations and individuals. It informs people and involves them in
the issue. And it can win important concessions and victories in
social change.
This book is broken into three parts: Section I is for those of you
in the situation most nonprofits face—a lack of time—and outlines the nuts and bolts if you only have ten to 30 days to do
media work. It will give you the basics you need to get some
media coverage. Section II covers long-term planning, a political
overview of using the media to your advantage, and advanced
skills for the media maven. Section III describes the growing corporate control of the media.
Section I
This section of the guidebook will take you through a short
course on how to achieve media coverage by asking you to focus
on some vital questions:
Why am I doing media work?
Who am I trying to reach?
What story am I trying to communicate?
How should I pitch this story?
Where will my pitch be well received and successful?
When should I pitch?
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Media How-To Guidebook
Section II
Section II highlights media planning, press conferences, and
media advocacy, and expands upon the skills covered in Section I.
Section III
Section III is an article about the growing control of media by a
few corporations. It is meant to show you why progressive groups
will find it harder and harder to get coverage about issues in conflict with corporate interests.
Overall, this guidebook is intended to tell you the minimum and
the maximum you can do to attain the media coverage you want.
It is meant to be supplemented by:
Training: Media Alliance offers courses in basic and advanced
media skills.
Media lists: Media Alliance offers the most up-to-date and thorough list of reporters and media outlets in the San Francisco Bay
Area in People Behind the News.
The process of getting your issue covered by the media also
requires your belief in the value of media work and a commitment of your time. Are there issues it is impossible to get covered? Yes. Is yours one of them? I doubt it.
Veteran media activist Tony Newman had to get coverage of Cuba
before it was fashionable. He’s now a big honcho with a media
firm in New York. He said, “I tried everything and then I finally
went to the travel editor who took the story.”
There are many sections of a newspaper and many reporters.
Their job is to make news available to the public in an interesting
manner. Your job is to make the reporters aware of the importance of your cause and to tell your story so that they will cover
it.
Here’s how . . .
10
Short-Term Media Work
Section I
Short-Term Media Work
You have ten to thirty days to get media coverage of your issue and/or you are too overwhelmed to plan more than thirty days in
advance.
11
12
Short-Term Media Work
The Minimum
In my ten years of pitching the media, as an organizer and media
consultant, everyone always asks, “what’s the minimum it takes
to get good coverage?” So here’s the answer:
It takes one person six hours a week for a minimum of one
month.
It says something about our society that time pressure forces us
to condense and condense, but, philosophizing aside, this is the
reality. If you don’t have six hours a week, hire a public relations
firm or re-evaluate how important substantial coverage is to you
and your organization. That’s the minimum, and, like going to the
gym, writing for publication, or doing a ten-year campaign on a
company, it involves a minimum of daily tasks to get the results
you desire. Here’s a breakdown of how to spend your time week
by week.
Week I
First two hours - Decide on Your Target Audience
Second two hours - Be a Media Consumer
Third two hours - Practice Pitching a Story
Week II
First two hours - Begin to Build a Media List
Second two hours - Practice Advanced Pitching
Third two hours - Begin to Write a Press Release
Week III
First two hours - Finish Press Release
Second two hours - Train Additional Spokespeople
Third two hours - Develop Your Media List
Week IV
First two hours - Send Out Your Press Release
Second two hours - Pitch to Reporters
Third two hours - Continue Pitching; Start Interviewing
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Media How-To Guidebook
This section of the guidebook walks you through a month of
training, planning, and practicing, and asks the key questions you
need to answer to be successful: why, who, what, how, where, and
when. If you only have ten days, you will need to condense this
work into that time period.
14
Short-Term Media Work
Decide on Your Target Audience
Week I First Two Hours
If you are about to embark on a journey to obtain media coverage
for your issue, or if you have been doing media pitching with limited or great success, ask yourself why you are doing media, especially whom you want to affect. Then find out which media outlets these people read, watch, and listen to.
For example:
Here in San Francisco, if you want to influence the mayor, you
need to target the top-ranked television news show on Channel 2
and the San Francisco Chronicle newspaper. Sending 200 faxes
to every media outlets in the city won’t help as much as will planning a targeted pitch to a reporter at the Chronicle and repetitively calling her, without leaving messages, until you get that
reporter on the phone. If you want to influence your organization’s biggest funder in New York, however, calling several
reporters at The New York Times or placing a piece in The
Chronicle of Philanthropy or The Nation might be a better bet.
Ask the following questions:
Who does my organization want to reach?
Examples of answers:
• People who would attend a rally to make sure workfare workers get food stamps.
• The Board of Supervisors—specify which members (for example, Supervisor Tom Ammiano).
• Mothers of children who might be exposed to toxic chemicals
in San Francisco.
• A foundation I want to receive a million dollars from.
Which media outlets do the people I want to reach read, watch,
and listen to?
Examples of corresponding answers:
• People who would attend a rally: The San Francisco Bay
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Media How-To Guidebook
Guardian (a weekly alternative newspaper), email alert lists,
and radio announcements (public service announcements).
• The Board of Supervisors, Supervisor Ammiano: The San
Francisco Chronicle, KTVU Channel 2 news, the Bay Area
Reporter (a newspaper for the gay community), and a community paper in Ammiano’s own neighborhood.
• Mothers of children: Hip Mama (a local magazine geared to
low-income mothers), Mothering (a national magazine), and a
San Francisco Chronicle columnist who often writes about
children and parenting.
• A Foundation: The Chronicle of Philanthropy and a local
newspaper in the city where a key person from the foundation
you are trying to reach lives.
This is called your target list. Your target is the person or people
who can make a desired change in your issue or people whom
you want to inform about your issue.
Your target determines your media outreach plan. It determines
which outlets are priorities for you to reach. Many people who
are just starting out doing media work fail to assess whom they
want to reach, and spend many hours faxing and calling a large
list of reporters and editors. This isn’t just a waste of time for
these reporters and editors; it’s a waste of time for you.
Many people will say “but I only want a piece in The New York
Times or on Good Morning America.” I cannot recommend that
you only pitch your story to one newspaper or one TV show, but I
do recommend that if your goal is opinion-making media or
national TV, you should choose between six and ten of those type
of outlets and focus on those. Focus on your target audience and
let that determine your media outreach plan.
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Short-Term Media Work
Which Media Reach Your
Target Audience?
If you don’t know which media outlets your target audience
reads, watches, and listens to, try the following tip list.
• Call and ask: “Hi, I’m doing a survey . . . what media does
so and so read and watch?”
•. Ask someone who might know. In the case of a foundation, ask a similar foundation which media they follow. In
the case of a city Supervisor, ask an aide or ask a secretary which publications are delivered to the office in the
morning.
• Find out where your target population lives and which are
their community, religious, or other affiliations. Then create a list of media outlets that cater to people of those
affiliations.
For example:
When campaigning to save the redwoods in Northern
California, the Headwaters activists targeted the media in
Texas and media used by the Jewish community, because
the owner of the Headwaters property, Charles Hurwitz,
lives in Texas and is Jewish.
• What groups might this person belong to? Does the organization have newsletters or magazines?
For example:
The Center for Commercial Free Public Education, a
group that works against advertising and corporations
taking over schools, succeeded at getting cover stories in
the California State Teacher’s Association magazine (circulation one million) and the National Education
Association newsletter (2.2 million readers).
Be creative and brainstorm!
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Media How-To Guidebook
What Is News
and
Newsworthy?
How do I know if my story
is news or feature?
• It’s newsworthy if it’s public:
Public hearings, court cases,
etc.
• It’s newsworthy if it’s timely:
It is happening for the first time.
• It’s newsworthy if it impacts a great number of people.
• It’s newsworthy if a newsworthy person is involved—a
picnic is not newsworthy, but a picnic with a celebrity or
politician in attendance is.
• It’s newsworthy if it’s a local story that relates to a national one.
• Remember many stories are “news”—but you must make
them stand out for reporters, especially by using graphics
or visuals.
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Short-Term Media Work
Be a Media Consumer
Week I Second Two Hours
In order to obtain media coverage, you have to become a media
consumer. You must read, watch, and listen, and be on the lookout for publications you’re not familiar with. Read magazines and
newspapers carefully to determine their themes or styles. Does
the publication have a particular agenda or objective? If so, does
it echo the concerns of your organization and/or your target audience? What type of audience is the media outlet trying to reach?
Notice writers’ bylines and learn which writers cover the issues
you’re interested in and which writers seem sympathetic to your
cause. For your two hours, write down names of reporters and
media pieces you thought were good or were sympathetic to a
perspective you agree with. The list should look like this:
Media Outlet (alphabetical order) Story I Liked Reporter
How to Pitch a Story
Week I Third Two Hours
The single most important step in obtaining media coverage is
creating a message that communicates your issue and is interesting to reporters. To figure out what that message is, you need to
think about the goals of your organization. Are you trying to
change school board policy on bilingual education? Recruit new
members to participate in your organization’s activities? Educate
the public about how to report cases of domestic violence? The
goal of your organization determines the message you want to get
out through the media. Getting a reporter interested in your message by providing him with news is called pitching.
There are two steps to creating a successful message—also called
a sound bite. The steps here are based on what works in media
training and are meant to be practiced. You’ll need a friend you
can practice with. Let’s assume you have something interesting to
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Media How-To Guidebook
say—you just aren’t sure how to communicate it to a journalist.
To find out what’s interesting for a journalist, first find out what’s
interesting to an audience.
Step 1: Start swimming without practicing! Practice a 30 second
pitch on your issue. Call someone close to you—a friend, a coworker, your mother! Ask the person to listen to you talk for 30
seconds about your issue or organization. Time yourself. Do not
go over 30 seconds. Then ask the person to repeat back to you
what you just said.
What does the person remember?
What was of interest?
Adjust your message and try again. Don’t pitch the same person
more than two times. Do this exercise between five and ten
times.
Hopefully, after your first round of pitching, you will notice several commonalities in the responses you receive and how you felt
about the pitch. You’ll probably realize that:
• Thirty seconds is a short amount of time.
• Explaining your organization, its name, and mission takes up
too much time, and, unless yours is a recognizable group, that
information is not worth including.
• People remember only small bits of information, most often
stories and pictures.
Step 2: Try to frame your pitch in stories and pictures.
True example: To pass a living wage law in San Francisco
Old pitch: “Hi, I’m Tom Jones calling you from the Living Wage
Coalition in San Francisco. We are a coalition of workers, business people, clergy, and unions working for the upcoming legislation to make all jobs that contract with the City pay their
workers $13/hour, the amount the Association for Bay Area
Governments says is needed to live on for a single parent in
San Francisco. The first hearing on this issue will be held . . .”
Think pictures. Think a story that moved you that exemplifies
your issue. If you aren’t able to articulate what it is about your
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Short-Term Media Work
issue that someone would take a picture of or what a camera
would follow, you haven’t done your job.
New pitch: “Hi, I’m Tom, working on the living wage in San
Francisco. The story here is about single moms—like Hanna
Weiss who works two jobs and still can’t make enough to make
ends meet every month. Hanna takes home $410 a week, and,
after buying groceries and paying her rent, she doesn’t have
anything left. Hanna will be speaking at the first public hearing
on living wage on Saturday at City Hall at 10 a.m.”
If you have no event to pitch, use stories that have been covered
before or are popular to bolster your cause.
Fictional example:
Old pitch: “I’m Van Jones calling on police brutality here in San
Francisco, where the average of 30 police brutality cases a
year are now 60 cases in the last year, and we are releasing a
study this week that shows this.”
New pitch: “I’m Van Jones calling you about breaking news on
police brutality. Stories like the one you’ve covered in the past
year, about Aaron Williams, who was beaten to death by a
police officer, are part of a local and national trend. A ground
breaking study will be released that shows San Francisco cases
have doubled—which is above the national average.”
Tip: If you are struggling, interview people affected by your issue
or other advocates and ask them the following:
For people affected by your issue:
• What impact has this issue had on your life?
• How do you spend your day?
• What is your life like?
For advocates:
• What moves you about this issue?
• What story or person inspired you to spend your life dedicated
to this issue?
Look for stories and pictures and use them to bring your pitch to
life. Use them to make sure a journalist who will have to turn
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Media How-To Guidebook
around and remember enough about your story to pitch it to his
editor, will know what to say.
Begin to Build a Media List
Week II First Two Hours
Identify people who were interviewed and organizations that were
mentioned (“contacts” and “sources”) in the stories you picked
from the media last week (see page 19). Call them and see if they
know the reporter who wrote the story and if they have her
phone number.
Obtain a media list from Media Alliance or another organization.
Call the outlet of the story you chose and obtain a direct phone
and fax number for the reporter. Say, “I’m updating my media
list.”
Your media list will now look like this:
Media Outlet Story I Liked Reporter Phone # Fax #
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Short-Term Media Work
Practice Advanced Pitching
Week II Second Two Hours
STEP 3: Back to swimming—that is, pitching. (If you forgot steps
one and two, see page 20.)
Now that you’ve envisioned a picture that’s associated with your
issue from the work you did last week, practice pitching your 30
second picture with a partner back and forth for 30 minutes.
Give each other feedback about what works and what doesn’t.
Call in two other people from your organization and ask them to
listen to your pitch. Give yourself another 30 minutes for this.
Ask them what the headline would be for the story you’ve been
pitching.
With your partner, role play calling a journalist. Sample role
plays:
• Role play a busy reporter.
• Role play an interested reporter.
• Role play a disinterested reporter.
• Role play a reporter who asks the one question you hope the
reporters won’t ask.
• Role play what you’ll say if you get the reporter’s voicemail.
STEP 4: Prepare your list of talking points.
To stay on message, develop a list of talking points:
You should have between three and ten points that you are willing to make during a media interview. Practice answering questions with a response that is one of your points. If a reporter asks
a question that you don’t want to answer, redirect the question.
Example: The reporter asks, “Isn’t your organization a bunch of
radicals?”
Sample answer: What’s at issue here is the forest in Northern
California that contains a rare species of birds that will go extinct
if the trees are cut down.
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Media How-To Guidebook
Creating
Media
Events
Sometimes you can
attract more media attention
from a staged event than you can
from a “real” event. Staged events must be imaginative in order to garner media attention. If you do stage
an event, follow the advice under “The ABCs of The Press
Conference” (see page 52) when inviting and preparing for
the media. The possibilities for such events are limitless.
Here are some ideas:
• Hold a benefit concert or comedy night, or host an art
exhibit.
• Bring your message to the neighborhoods, with volunteers
walking door-to-door with lawn signs or literature.
• Organize an event on a holiday, or get a proclamation
from a high-ranking official declaring your event “XXX
Day.”
• Organize an awards ceremony honoring community leaders who work on your issue.
• Sponsor a contest (for example, a rap contest relating to
education funding).
• Announce the undertaking of a joint project with a broad
coalition.
• Express your organization’s position on an issue through a
dramatic presentation in a public arena, such as dressing
in costumes of an endangered species and prancing
around the federal building to show support for a pending
environmental bill. You can use similar tactics to educate
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Short-Term Media Work
Begin to Write a Press Release
Week II Third Two Hours
Your press release is the one page that communicates your message. It should read as a short story of what you want to see in
the newspaper.
Refer to the sample press releases on pages 26 and 32.
It’s really a news release
The term many people use for a written advisory regarding a
story or event is a press release. The term news release is more
accurate, since it is news that you’re releasing. Most news releases fail to generate coverage, because they are not newsworthy or
do not appear to be newsworthy. You will set yourself apart by
honing your release-writing and follow-up skills.
An assignment editor on a big-city daily receives literally hundreds
of news leads each day. Most of these leads arrive on the news
wire as tips, or in the form of news releases. Just how many of the
news releases from nonprofit organizations are used is difficult to
discern, but one thing is certain: The more professional looking
your release, the better chance you have of making the news.
Likewise, editors, producers, and reporters responsible for features and arts coverage receive a flood of news releases each day,
many of which contain no newsworthy information at all. If you
establish a reputation for writing concise, newsworthy releases—
the type that tip off a reporter to a good story—your releases will
be read. Below is a guide that covers the key points of good
release writing and organization.
Writing the news release
News releases are one page—period. There have been two times I
have used or seen two-page releases—once was during the Gulf
War, a release on casualties. If you are releasing a study, bullet
your information and limit it to three points. Use your website for
further summary pages and always have a one-page executive
summary ready for reporters who ask.
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Media How-To Guidebook
26
Short-Term Media Work
Your headline should be catchy and taken from your 30-second
sound bite—it is your two-sentence sound bite. Use active verbs
and evoke images.
Organize your news release in the standard newswriting style:
The inverted pyramid. As in a news story—which your release
potentially is—the first paragraph is the most important. It
should contain most of the basic story information, including
who, what, when, and where. If the information you’re releasing
is about a specific event or occurrence, make sure the date and
time of the event is in the first paragraph. The first paragraph is
your 30-second sound bite. Don’t forget to suggest pictures and
images in your writing.
The second paragraph is a quote: Who is concerned about this?
Whose voice do you want in the media? Similar to the sound
bite, the quote must be interesting and catchy.
Accuracy is extremely important. Remember, smaller newspapers
will often reprint well-written news releases with few or minor
changes, as a story. Your news release must be correct to the
point of obsessiveness. All of the information, including the
spelling of names and businesses and the time and cost of events,
must be error-free. Have someone proofread your copy. If you’re
not prepared to see the information you’ve put in a release
appear in a feature story, don’t send it.
Every news release you send should reflect your commitment to
newsworthiness, accuracy, substance, and writing style. Your
credibility as a news source is on the line, as is the amount of
coverage your organization or event will receive.
Standard news release format
A news release should be typed on letterhead.
At the top of the page, write either “FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:”
followed by the date you plan to send it, or “FOR RELEASE ON:”
followed by the date.
Either opposite the release date or slightly below it, write “For
More Information Contact:” followed by your name. On the line
below, write the contact phone number. The phone number you
want made available to the public, if any, should go at the end of
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Media How-To Guidebook
the release. If these numbers are the same, specify that. If they
are not, and you are especially sensitive to having your number
accidentally appear in the calendar section of your local paper,
add “Not For Publication” after any phone numbers you wish so
restrained.
Below your name and phone number, type the headline in bold
face type and a large font and center it. The headline should summarize the story and catch the reader’s interest.
Double-space the body of the release and use wide margins. If you
must go beyond one page, number each one, and end each page
with the word “MORE” or “OVER” (for double-sided paper) until
the end of the release, at which should appear either “END” or
“#” or “--30--.”
If you have photos available, or if your release is about an event
that will provide photo opportunities, be sure to include this
information at the top of the release. Write “Photos Available” in
bold face type, before the headline, below the contact information, followed by a list that describes the content of the photos.
If you have a video available that is short and relevant (3-5 minutes), be sure to put “Background Footage” in bold face type at
the top of the release, before the headline, below the contact
information, followed by a description of the footage.
When to release information
“For Immediate Release” is the standard news release-speak to let
a journalist know “use as soon as possible.” Depending upon circumstances, the other alternative is a date-controlled release
(“For release on: the date”). Remember, you do not control when,
or if, a release will be used. That is up to the discretion of the TV,
radio, and print editors who receive your release.
There may be times when you will want to withhold information
for release at a time more likely to get attention. In these cases,
it’s usually best to hold off sending the release until the time you
want the information to be used. But get in the habit of pulling
your information together as far in advance as possible. Write
what is called a “Swiss cheese” release: A sample news release
with holes left for information that will be forthcoming. When the
information is ready, fill in the holes.
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Short-Term Media Work
Finish Press Release
Week III First Two Hours
Once you have drafted your news release, you will need to fact
check it and spell check it.
Things to look out for:
• Verify all phone and fax numbers.
• Check spelling of names.
• Check quotations with the person or persons quoted.
If this is your first time writing a press release, you should also
check in with someone who has written one before. Most people
drafting their first release will spend eight to twelve hours on it,
so, if you don’t make it in four, that’s OK.
Train Additional Spokespeople
Week III Second Two Hours
Walk through the sections on pitching and sound bites (see pages
19 and 23) with all the people in your organization or connected
to it who will speak to the press. If you are pitching stories to TV
stations, the front desk person at your organization should also
be trained and prepared to deliver the organization’s message. If
you have volunteer constituents, or people you work with who
are voices for your issue, they need to be called in and trained for
at least an hour each.
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Media How-To Guidebook
Develop Your Media List
Week III Third Two Hours
Now that you have your pitch and press release ready and have
prepared your spokespeople, you have to decide where to pitch
your story and pull together your press list. If you have followed
the short-term format outlined in this book, you probably have a
list of names that includes about ten to 20 reporters. This is plenty for your first-time media try. It is plenty for a media hit, on
limited time. Targeted, well-researched lists are best.
At newspapers, magazines, Internet magazines, Internet radio
programs, and radio and TV stations, there are several kinds of
stories, and, hence, several kinds of reporters. The information
below will help you decide which reporters you might want to add
to your media list or prioritize.
Types of stories
• News—breaking news can be covered by general assignment
reporters or reporters who cover regular “beats” or areas such
as city hall, health, transportation, Latin America, etc.
• Features—personality profiles, pieces with an historical or
national angle, “soft” news.
• Columns—regularly-scheduled opinion pieces written by staff
writers, freelancers, or syndicated columnists.
• Opinion Pieces—written by guest writers, regular columnists,
and members of the general public (op-eds and letters to the
editor).
• Editorials—written by the newspaper staff.
• Special Sections—including arts, book reviews, sports, travel,
consumer issues, business, weekend, and datebook/event.
Most of the time in social justice work, you will be pitching to
reporters who do news or features, and to a columnist or two. At
the same time, you’ll be trying to get an opinion piece published.
Right now, your pitch is prepared for news and feature reporters.
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Short-Term Media Work
For specifics on columns, opinion pieces, editorials, the datebook
section, and photographs, see pages 40-49.
For your third two hours this week, gather a final media list by calling the outlets you don’t have on your list that you want coverage
from and asking which reporter would cover a story about your
issue.
Send Out Your Press Release
Week IV First Two Hours
You’ll want to send your release to the newspapers, magazines,
radio and TV stations, and wire services you hope will give editorial
coverage to your information. You should already have a good idea
of those outlets that are most likely to be interested in your release.
Sending a release to more than one person at the same news outlet
is acceptable as long as you know why you are sending it to more
than one person. You may also want to send your release to other
businesses, colleagues, funding sources, or individuals you want to
keep apprised of your activities.
How you send the release depends largely on who you are sending
it to and when it needs to reach them (it may also depend on your
budget). Releases can be sent by mail, hand delivered, faxed by
hand, faxed by computer, or emailed. Do not mass mail, fax, or
email. Always, always, select your list. Follow-up phone calls (your
pitch calls) determine coverage—not the number of faxes you send
out. Sending the release by fax or email is preferred, with fax being
best. Mail is not a good idea unless the news release is artistic, colorful, or eye-catching in a way that matches your message. You
wouldn’t send serious news on pink paper.
When and how to fax & email
Faxes should go out between four and eight days before the news
event and 24 hours in advance of your phone pitch. For complex
studies and arts events, fax eight days in advance. For all other
events, four days is fine. Re-send the fax only upon request.
“Fax blast” computer software programs are useful additions to
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Media How-To Guidebook
Press release insert
32
Short-Term Media Work
most publicity campaigns, and in some instances can be lifesavers,
but they should never be used indiscriminately. A standard campaign should include an initial release by mail, fax, or email; a follow-up phone call; and, if the reporter has lost or misplaced the
release (a scenario played out more often than you might imagine),
a follow-up fax.
When faxing by hand, put the reporter’s name on a small post-it
note at the top of the pages you’re faxing, to make sure that all
pages get to the right person at the media outlet. Eliminate the
cover page unless you’ve spoken to the reporter.
A note on email
Many reporters use email, but you must know which reporters read
their email daily and which do not. Email releases should be one
paragraph at most. Include your phone pitch in your email, along
with your phone number. Tell the reporter to call you for the full
news release or include a website address where the release and
additional information are available. As you get to know reporters,
ask them if they use email and if they like to receive press releases
that way.
Getting around the information glut
As we progress further into the information age, emailing news
releases will become more commonplace, as is faxing today. The
sheer number of emails that journalists receive will also become
overwhelming—as is the case with faxes right now. To get around
the fax glut that already exists, some activists have taken creative
cues from the recording industry, as in the example below.
Example:
During a major hearing on death penalty legislation in Washington,
DC, the coalition of activists working on the issue delivered black
balloons to members of Congress and the press with signs that read
“Don’t kill for me.” The activists then used this “logo” in their follow-up calls and on their faxes.
33
Media How-To Guidebook
Pitch to Reporters
Week IV Second Two Hours
Phone pitch tips
Don’t call the reporter on or near a publication’s or station’s deadline day or hour. Morning phone calls are usually received with
less resistance than those made in the afternoon, but it’s different
for every outlet. In general, good times to call are:
Print: 9 a.m. - 11 a.m.
Radio: Opposite of show time. For a morning show, call in the
afternoon. For an afternoon show, call in the morning.
TV:
Weekdays: 9 a.m., 3 p.m., 7 p.m., 9 p.m.
Weekends: 8 a.m. and 1 p.m.
Use your 30-second sound bite. Have all the story essentials—
who, what, where, when, and why—written down in front of you.
Make your pitch. Be brief and direct: Say what the story is and
why it’s important. State your case as succinctly and effectively
as possible, speaking slowly and clearly. Ask if the reporter would
like additional information. If she does, send the information out
immediately. Ask if you can fax it to her. If she tells you that she’s
on deadline, ask when you should call back.
Follow up with a brief note thanking the reporter for taking the
time to discuss the story with you. Include a reiteration of your
pitch and a copy of the news release relating to the pitch. Do not
send more than three pages by fax unless requested to do so.
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Short-Term Media Work
Continue Pitching;
Start Interviewing
Week IV Third Two Hours
Interviews
The interview is the single most common method any journalist
uses to gather information for a story. An interview may be as
simple as a single phone call for background information or comments on a story, or it may be an in-depth question-and-answer
session used to anchor a feature article.
If you or your organization are an authority on a certain subject,
you may be approached by the media for background interviews
or for comments on stories relating to your area of expertise.
Reporters are always looking for informed comment on breaking
news stories, and they rely on credible sources for information on
the issues they cover. Your expertise can help a journalist in her
research and add credibility to the story. It can also help identify
you as a news source.
Don’t be afraid to identify yourself as an authority. The first step
in becoming this type of news source is to announce yourself.
Make yourself available. Provide the media with a list of the subjects on which you are an authority and why you are an authority
on those topics. Identify the reporters who cover subjects related
to your area of expertise and make sure they have your phone
number.
Everyone in the media reads and watches other media, and journalists take particular note of any stories relating to their beat.
Your comments in one publication may lead to requests by others
for your time and expertise. The first time a journalist calls you
for comment on an issue is a milestone day. You have become a
credible source of news whose opinions are valued.
If your organization has a director or celebrity as part of its structure, either permanently or temporarily, and you would like to
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Media How-To Guidebook
have the newspaper interview that person for a feature story, suggest it. Proposing such an interview to an editor, however, may
elicit this response: “Why should I, and what is he going to say
that’s timely and of interest?” Be prepared to respond.
Things to remember during an interview
• Interviews are not conversations, they are multiple choice
tests. The reporter is representing the public, and will probably
ask hard or sometimes deliberately leading questions to elicit
an emotional response from you. You are speaking to the public, not the reporter. The reporter is the vehicle for your
thoughts. The only message you have is your sound bite and
talking points. If you don’t stray from the talking points, journalists can’t misquote or misrepresent you.
• A good reporter will always try to make the interview conversational in nature to make you more comfortable. The more
comfortable you are, the more likely you will reveal information that will make a good story for the reporter’s editor. It’s
not underhanded on the reporter’s part—it’s part of the job.
Don’t be hostile or evasive, but don’t feel that you have to give
detailed answers to every question a reporter casts your way.
Focus on your key points. Stay on message.(See bottom of
page 23.)
• Prepare, prepare, prepare. You should assume that the reporter
will have done her homework, although that is not always the
case. Providing the reporter with background on your organization and key points you would like to discuss will likely be
appreciated. Be ready for anything. Think of the one question
you’re least prepared to answer, or the one thing you don’t
want to talk about, and be ready to handle it should it come
up.
More importantly, set your own agenda. The reporter has come
to you for an interview; it follows that he wants to know what
is important to you. Line up your talking points and repeat
them several times during the interview.
• There is no such thing as “off the record.” Be aware that from
36
Short-Term Media Work
the instant you grant an interview anything you say may end
up in print. Most reporters will respect a request to go off the
record, but use it sparingly. Also, the line between what is on
and what is off the record may not always be clear. Your rule of
thumb should be: If you don’t want it to appear in print, don’t
say it.
Your rights as an interview subject
You can often determine the time, place, and length of an interview, especially if the media has requested it. Negotiate. You have
the right to be comfortable. The reporter will just have to deal
with it or pass on the interview. Of course, if it’s important to you
that the interview take place, you will have to be flexible. When
someone calls you, put them on hold and take a moment to think
of your message.
Ask for the topics to be discussed. You have a right to know the
purpose of the interview and to have an idea of the sorts of questions you may be asked. Ask the reporter: What’s your angle on
this story? Who else have you interviewed?
Confirm all spellings. The reporter wants to get it right, too. Ask
to have spellings re-read to you. There are many variations on
names and titles that sound similar.
Tips for making an interview go your way
• Tell the truth. If you lie or mislead, your credibility will be
destroyed forever. If you absolutely cannot divulge information, say so, and state why as completely as possible. If you lie
or give the impression that you are hiding information, the
good reporter will simply go elsewhere for the information. If
she gets it in confirmable form, you will appear in the story as
the person who had something to hide, or who was just uninformed.
• If you’re asked a question over the phone that you don’t want
or don’t know how to answer, tell the reporter that you’ll get
back to him on that question as soon as possible. After you
hang up the phone, take a deep breath, figure out how to
37
Media How-To Guidebook
answer the question with the least amount of damage, and call
the reporter back, within an hour if possible. This tactic gives
you a chance to regroup and put your answer in the best light.
• Stay on message. Remember, this is not a conversation even
though it sounds like one.
Appearing on TV or radio
Whomever you choose as a spokesperson, it’s essential that the
person be punctual. Never be late for a television or radio appearance. Additionally, make sure that the person appearing on the
show looks neat and professional. Simple, tasteful, neutral-colored clothing is best for a TV appearance. If it’s a radio show,
only the host and the technicians will see your speaker—but that
doesn’t mean she should wear sweat pants. How the spokesperson
presents herself will influence how the host treats her.
Remember, your spokesperson is representing your organization
to the host as well as to the listening audience.
Appearing on a talk show
A talk-show guest can use certain techniques effectively to direct
the interview rather than be at the mercy of the show host and
the other guests. You will have worked hard to book your
representative on a show. Invest some time to train the person as
an organizational spokesperson. Give the spokesperson these
pointers:
• Don’t fiddle or clutch anything. Maintain eye contact with the
interviewer.
• Interact with the host. Be attentive and polite, and maintain
control. Sometimes interview situations get antagonistic. Don’t
be rude or add to the chaos, but insist on your time to speak
and present your views. This may mean raising your voice
slightly, or interrupting someone who has cut you off.
Sometimes being polite and waiting out the interruption will
do nothing to get your point across—and that’s why you’re
there.
• Stay in control of everything you say. Don’t get trapped into
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Short-Term Media Work
talking about unfavorable or unimportant issues by the interviewer. Hosts are very talented at getting people to talk about
things the spokesperson doesn’t want to talk about. Stick to
your talking points.
• Practice the whole interview in advance, just as you practiced
pitching.
Getting into print by
“packaging” stories
More people may get their news
from TV and radio these days, but
the print media still provide a good
amount of news. Every community has a wide
array of publications—from daily papers to weeklies to ethnic and community papers to magazines and specialty publications—that are a major source of information about the
community or about a specific interest or issue.
Because there are so many print outlets, your organization
or event probably has a better chance of getting coverage
from a publication than it does from a radio or TV station.
Getting covered by several small publications—and trying to
ensure that the stories are positive and state your message—
helps get coverage by larger publications.
Sending three community newspapers stories to a city editor
at a daily paper shows him that this issue is a local trend. A
similar pattern holds for national trends. It is possible to get
national press coverage if three to five pieces written in different cities regarding the same issue are sent at the same
time (packaged) to an editor at a national media outlet.
39
Media How-To Guidebook
Additional Short-Term Media
Strategies
News tips
Sometimes a fast-breaking story may be happening too quickly
for you to send off a news release or advisory, but it could be a
big story, and one important to the concerns of your organization.
Or the story might not be “yours” to break, but media coverage
of it would influence the public’s perception of your issue. Story
leads can be passed on to a reporter you know to be interested in
your issue without using a news release.
To pass on a news tip, just pick up the phone and call your contact. Be as thorough and accurate as possible. “I thought you’d be
interested in something going on here at the campaign . . .” is one
approach. Sometimes a tip can be passed on as a question: “Hey,
I just heard XXX, do you know anything about it?” If it’s a hot
story, the reporter will take the tip and get on it. Never pressure a
reporter to follow through on a news tip. You may, however,
phone back to find out if anything ever came of the story.
Calendar listings
Every major city has literally dozens of free calendar and events
listings, in both the major media outlets and in a wide array of
smaller and specialty publications. Calendar listings can be a very
easy way to get free publicity for your organization or event. All
you have to do to be considered for a listing is to send the information in the format the particular calendar editor prefers, and
make sure it gets there by the time it’s needed.
Make an initial contact with each calendar editor you are interested in pitching. Drop a note and introduce yourself. Tell the calendar editor when your upcoming events are. Find out his deadlines and stick to them. Also, ask who is the person to send pictures to and whether that person accepts black and white, color,
or both? After a while, calendar editors will begin calling you
back to confirm the specifics of your events.
40
Short-Term Media Work
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Media How-To Guidebook
The inclusion of your event in a calendar or listings section is up
to the calendar editor. Make sure you are aware of each publication’s calendar deadlines. Follow-up phone calls to some calendar
sections will increase your chances of getting in. For others, a
phone call will merely irritate an already overburdened listings
person. Get to know your contacts.
If you sponsor a lot of events, you may want to evaluate the costeffectiveness of distributing your own organizational calendar to
various publications.
Photographs
It may be a cliché that “a picture is worth a thousand words,” but
it holds true for most types of journalism, even print media. Art
directors want to make their publications look lively and attractive to the public, and interesting photos play an important role
in a magazine or newspaper’s look. Color photography is becoming more and more common in daily newspapers and weekly
tabloids. A brief survey of free calendar sections will show you
that the groups that include interesting photos with their listings
often get bigger play, and sometimes a special caption. Everybody
benefits from a good photo.
Larger print media outlets will often send their own photographer
to cover an event or take photos of an interview subject. All the
better. Be prepared to help arrange photo sessions with interview
subjects. If a newspaper or magazine requests a photo shoot, be
sure to provide them with several ready-to-go setups. They may
or may not use them, but they will appreciate the assistance.
For smaller publications, and also for smaller events and listings,
you will often need to provide photos. Whenever you’re pitching a
story or event, be sure to note if photos are available, or ask if
they’ll be needed.
If you are planning to provide publicity photos, you will need to
work out details concerning payment and ownership rights with
the photographer. Generally, you pay a fee that allows you to use
the photos in connection with all publicity for a particular event
or story, but the photographer retains the copyright and negative,
and the photos cannot be used again without further payment
42
Short-Term Media Work
unless special arrangements are made. It is also standard practice
for the photographer to be credited each time a photo is used.
Tips for submitting photographs
• Send your photos to the correct person—probably not the
writer of the article or calendar listing. Most publications have
a separate photo editor. Identify this person, find out what her
deadlines are, and submit your pictures in time.
• Submit black-and-white glossy photographs measuring either
5x7 or 8x10. If the publication accepts color, submit slides or
transparencies. Make a follow-up call to see if the photo editor
liked the pictures you submitted, and if she needs any further
information or photos.
• Caption every photo sent. Include the names and titles of the
individuals or items in the photo (left to right if at all possible),
the location, a brief description of the action, pertinent dates if
applicable, and a contact phone number for more information.
Attach the caption to the rear of the photo with tape. If you
want to have the photographs returned, put the return address
on a label and attach it to the back. Also include the photographer’s name for a photo credit.
• Newspapers usually always prefer vertical shots to horizontal
ones. Look closely at the photos newspapers use and see for
yourself. Magazines and some tabloid publications are more
prone to use specialty or unusually-sized prints.
• Each publication has a format. Most newspapers don’t want
artsy shots and non-standard-shaped photos. Trick photography has its place, but, with few exceptions, its place is not the
newspaper. Some magazines and tabloids, however, may be
looking for unusual photos, particularly for sections dealing
with the arts. Your photos should capture a strong sense of
emotion, place, and conflict. Give them a strong focal point;
overly busy shots don’t translate well.
• Regardless of their format, all publications want good photos. If
a photo is out of focus, or has no visual interest, or the lighting
is bad, or the principal subject is hard to see, it isn’t going to
be used.
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Media How-To Guidebook
Columns
Almost every newspaper and magazine has regular columnists.
Read their columns to familiarize yourself with the topics they
cover and the writer’s style. Are they political, society, humor, or
gossip columnists? Do their columns appear on regular days? Find
out. In many instances, the columnists have been with the publication for years and are looked to for their insightful, humorous, or
controversial takes on local issues.
Many local papers take a great deal of pride in their regular columnists, and the stories written by these special reporters—often
given wide latitude in what they write about—are frequently the
first part of the paper people read.
Dealing with columnists
• Establish rapport. Columnists are always looking for items that
will fill their allotted inches. Drop them an introductory line,
perhaps citing a specific column of theirs you liked. Tell them to
keep up the good work and sign off. A month later, drop them an
item—a funny incident or serious opinion you would like them
to mention in their column—and see if they use it. If they do,
you have just gotten visibility and credibility via a respected
media vehicle.
• Make ‘em laugh. Columnists, especially local human-interest
ones, are generally known for having a sense of humor. Even if
they deal with serious issues, the format of a column allows
them to be conversational. If you pitch an idea to a columnist,
don’t be afraid to be funny—but always use good taste as defined
by the majority of the population.
• Know which columnists are rivals. In many cities, similar columnists cover the same sort of thing for competing papers. Some
are friendly rivals, others are bitter enemies. Don’t double-sell
columnists on an item. If there is a society, events, or gossip
columnist you want to place an item with, offer the item to one
columnist as an exclusive. If the columnist doesn’t use the item
within a certain number of days, call him back and say: “Are you
going to use such and such in your column?”
44
Short-Term Media Work
• Be friendly but professional. Dealing with regular columnists—
whether political writers or neighborhood reporters—requires
a level of professional familiarity unlike any other you will
encounter. Columnists are the stars of their publications and
expect to be treated as such. If you like a columnist, tell him
so. If you don’t, don’t send him an item. Timing is everything
with this type of item or story placement. You will soon learn
when columnists regularly appear, and how and when they
want to receive information. The power of the phone and the
fax can’t be underestimated.
Opinion pieces
The editorial and op-ed pages are a widely read section of the
paper and vital forum for public debate. You will be remiss if you
do not familiarize yourself with this section and, hopefully, take
advantage of its free access. The editorials are the ones that
appear on the left and are written “in house.”
Newspapers have been called the glue that binds a community
together. Besides gathering the news from local and international
sources, they serve as town meeting places for ideas. The publisher and editors of a paper lay out their opinions on the editorial page. There is nothing objective about it. “I own or control this
paper,” the editorial page says, “and this is what I think about
certain issues.” However, if your organization has an opinion it
wants heard, even if that opinion is in disagreement with the editorial position of the paper, there are ways in which you can
ensure that your views are heard.
Writing for the op-ed page
Most op-ed pages contain a mix of nationally syndicated and local
columnists. They can also include articles written by you or a
representative of your organization. In theory, a letter to the editor can become a guest editorial or opinion piece—it’s up to the
editor. You can also request space for an op-ed article if you or
your organization are experts on a specific subject.
Op-ed space is limited and the competition for it can be fierce. If
your issue is timely or controversial, you are more likely to be
considered for a guest editorial.
45
Media How-To Guidebook
Send a letter pitching your idea to the editor of the editorial page.
Include background materials that confirm your stature in the community and your credentials to write on the subject for which you
are requesting space. Everyone has an opinion. Why is yours newsworthy? (See “What is news and newsworthy,” page 18.) Follow up
with a phone call.
In some cases you may submit the editorial itself in completed
form. Generally, if it is going to be given major play, the editor will
contact you. Allow a couple of weeks for the editor to respond.
Some publications, usually national ones, pay a nominal fee for
guest editorials. Most editorials or guest opinions, however, are not
paid for.
Tips for writing a guest editorial
• Op-ed pieces range in length from 750 to 1,000 words. To estimate article length, count each double-spaced, typed or computer-printed page with standard margins as 250 words. Some
papers may print longer or shorter pieces. Find out the publication’s requirements and adhere to them.
• Move the reader to action. Don’t be afraid to ask your audience
to do something. You don’t have to be objective—this is your
opinion. Tell them what you believe and why. Make them believe
it, too. It’s important to remember, however, that facts presented
in a responsible manner are your most powerful tool to influence
readers.
• A strong lead (your first sentence) is crucial. Your first few sentences have to accomplish two goals: Capture the reader’s attention and clearly state the central theme of your piece. The
remainder of the piece should support that thesis. The closing
statement should give readers a new issue to mull over. Leave
them thinking.
• Another media outlet may see your letter or guest editorial and
contact you for comment on a story it’s doing. Your opinions
printed on the editorial pages of the newspaper will establish you
as a valued news source.
46
Short-Term Media Work
Letters to the editor
Letters to the editor can raise points about issues in the news,
express opinions on political issues, or call attention to the work
of your organization. Contrary to popular belief, the media will
print opinions different from their own. That’s precisely what the
op-ed and letters to the editor sections of the paper are for.
You or your group’s spokesperson should address your letter to
the “Letters to the Editor” section. Keep the letter to three paragraphs in length. It may be edited for space, but rarely for content. Don’t be surprised to find your letter in an abbreviated form.
Always tie your letter to something current, preferably something
the publication has covered. If you are responding to an editorial
or article you have seen in the paper (or even to an event in the
community), state that up front: “I am writing in reference to
your article or editorial of March 9, 1999” or “to the demonstration I witnessed on X.” Keep your letter short, direct, and simple.
A rambling, overly emotional diatribe will not be printed—or you
may wish it had not been.
If you read something on Monday that you want to respond to,
don’t wait until Friday to send your letter. Do it immediately.
Don’t bother calling to see if the paper is going to print your letter. The staff won’t tell you.
Don’t hesitate to send letters to national publications. Weekly
news magazines like Time and Newsweek have widely read letters sections.
Editorial board meetings
There are times when you or your organization will be dealing
with an issue of such importance or complexity that you feel a
meeting with the editorial board of a publication is necessary.
The first thing to remember is that such scenarios are very rare.
Usually, a letter outlining your position on a specific issue or an
op-ed article submitted to the paper will be a far more effective
way of presenting your case. You can also pull together several
organizations to meet with the editorial board about a specific
topic. Four nonprofits asking for a meeting as a group have a bet-
47
Media How-To Guidebook
ter chance of getting a meeting than does one organization on its
own.
Don’t be insulted if the editorial page editor or the editorial board
of a publication turns down your request for an in-person meeting. This is common practice. One editorial-page editor of a major
urban daily said that many groups call to request a meeting with
his newspaper’s editorial board. When he asks why they want
one, their response is: “To answer your questions.” This editor’s
response: “We don’t have any questions.”
The most frequent use of editorial board meetings is to interview
political candidates who want the media outlet’s endorsement.
However, if you feel that your group, for whatever reason,
deserves time with an editor to explain your position in person,
here are some guidelines and tips that will help you.
• Write or call and ask how the editor or editorial board likes to
be approached. Do they want requests for meetings in writing
or will a phone call suffice? They will appreciate the call, especially if you follow through on their request. Don’t be afraid to
make personal contacts.
• Use your contacts. If you already have good, solid contacts
with writers, editors, or reporters within a news outlet, ask
them to help you set up a meeting. More importantly, solicit
their advice. They may know whether or not your issue stands
a chance of being considered at all.
• At the meeting, introduce yourself and explain your organization’s concern or issue. Have something new to present to the
editorial board. Don’t call for a meeting merely “to chat.” The
editorial page editor of your local daily paper is busy. To stand
a chance, make sure you have an issue that is new and a specific agenda for the meeting.
• Use positive reinforcement. If you agreed with a specific editorial or op-ed piece in the paper, tell the editors. Let them know
that you read their paper and value its opinions. If you do this,
you’ll have taken a step toward positioning yourself and your
organization as possible news sources, and perhaps as the subject of future editorials.
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Short-Term Media Work
Internet PR
Many organizations are excited about the possibility of reaching
out to new audiences using the Internet. In this book, we cover
how you can use new technologies to get your story out to the
media (emailing short press releases to them or posting a press
release and background information on your website), including
to reporters who work at online publications. Additionally, you
can use the Internet to take your story directly to the public. You
can create a website with information about your organization
and activities; and you can post event announcements or news
tips to email lists, newsgroups, and web forums whose subscribers are interested in the issues that you care about.
Flyers and newsletters
Remember that sometimes the best way to reach your target
audience is not through a media outlet but through your own
organizational newsletter or through flyers. You can mail flyers to
your members and to like-minded organizations, post them at
cafes, community centers, and libraries, and distribute them at
political or cultural events.
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Media How-To Guidebook
50
Long-Term Media Work
Section II
Long-Term Media Work
51
Media How-To Guidebook
The ABCs of the Press Conference
The most important thing to remember if you’re thinking about
holding a news conference (often referred to as a press conference) is that they are seldom necessary. In the same way that
many news releases contain information that is mundane or
lacks newsworthiness, many news conferences are called to
announce something that should have been handled with much
less fanfare. A conference should be used only to alert all media
of a major event or study. For most organizations, the goals of a
news conference can be better obtained through individual
interviews with journalists, even if you have to schedule several.
When you hold a news conference, you’re asking the media to
come to you. It better be worth their time and energy to make
that effort. Look at it from the point of view of a managing editor or a TV assignment department. Is this information important enough to be worth the precious staff time and effort that’s
necessary to cover a conference? Are the issues to be discussed
so complex that they cannot be answered via a news release or
a phone call? Will the attention and visibility you hope to gain
be worth the time, energy, and money spent setting up the conference?
Remember, it’s difficult enough to get journalists to read your
releases. Getting them to attend a press conference can be even
more daunting. Once they are there, you must be prepared to
answer difficult questions from a variety of reporters.
Setting up the conference
Decide the agenda and determine the approximate amount of
time the conference will take (half an hour is standard; one
hour is generally the maximum). Schedule your speakers and
guests. Who will write the speech? Who will train your speakers? Line this up as far in advance as possible. Never wing it.
Prepare a written statement for the press to respond to, and further talking points as well.
Decide the time. The day, date, and time of your conference will
be contingent upon the schedules of your speakers. You must
52
Long-Term Media Work
also take into consideration the deadlines and schedules of the
media representatives you hope will attend. For the media,
weekends are generally not good, and early in the day is better
than later. Press conferences scheduled for later than 2 p.m. are
less likely to be attended than one held in the late morning.
Select a site. This should be done as far in advance as possible.
Sometimes the offices of your organization are not the best
place to hold a news conference. Finding a comfortable, wellequipped conference room at a hotel, club, or auditorium can
make logistics easier and add to the interest of your conference.
Larger hotels are especially good because they deal with press
conferences on a regular basis. They usually have someone on
staff who can talk you through the electronic and various other
needs of the media.
A conference site that is relevant to your story can help you
make your point and also provide a good backdrop for photographs and TV footage. For instance, if your organization is
trying to expose the inadequate enforcement of the housing
code in low-income housing, staging a press conference outside
a dilapidated housing project can help you grab the media’s
attention. Also remember that sites like these can make logistics difficult.
Conference sites should be easily accessible to the media, especially TV. Holding news conferences at City Hall or a county
administrative building may help increase attendance, as many
media already have representatives stationed there. Choose the
site and meet with the appropriate staff early on to iron out any
questions. Ask the journalists you’re targeting where they generally go to press conferences.
Alert the media. Prepare a press advisory and invite the media
representatives you would like to have attend. Generally, news
conference invitations should be received by the media one
week in advance. A second advisory should be sent to key
media outlets a couple of days prior to the conference. Faxing
advisories to TV assignment desks is expected as well.
Ask the media to RSVP to your invitation, but expect that many
will not respond and will then show up anyway. You will have to
make pitch phone calls when scheduling a conference, espe-
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Media How-To Guidebook
cially when dealing with TV. Send out your news advisories,
then follow up with a well-organized phone campaign.
Rehearse. Have all your speakers run through their prepared
material. Ask them to state their most important points in 30
seconds in case they need to deliver additional radio or TV
interviews after the main conference. Test the speakers with all
possible questions—friendly, hostile, and embarrassing.
Prepare some type of visual element for the conference, and let
the TV station know that visuals will be part of the conference.
There are exceptions to this time line. For instance, many organizations, especially major cultural institutions, have an annual
or biannual conference to announce their upcoming schedule of
events or season. These can be scheduled farther in advance
and are generally well-attended. Sometimes a sudden change
within your organization or an unexpected event will demand a
conference on short notice. In these cases, the city and assignment desks of the print and electronic media should be alerted
by phone and then faxed a brief advisory. Notify the wire services and have them put your advisory out over the wire to
their media contacts.
The news conference checklist
• Is your room large enough to hold the invited number of journalists, plus a few more? Always leave yourself plenty of room
for last-minute attendees.
• Can the conference site accommodate TV cameras? Is the
background behind the speaker a color suitable for television?
Some shades or tints of blue will not work if the station has
selected that color for drop-outs (the background screens
behind TV anchors and reporters, like those used to project
maps in weather reports). Are there enough (and powerful
enough) electrical outlets and extension cords for cameras and
microphones? Is there a mult box (a device that allows radio
and TV reporters to plug their recording equipment directly
into the sound system)?
• You may want to hire a photographer to take several rolls of
black-and-white shots of the conference and your speakers, to
54
Long-Term Media Work
EVICTION DE
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, 1998
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11 am Hearing
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55
Media How-To Guidebook
be delivered to selected print outlets that did not send a representative.
• Are there refreshments available? Refreshments, including
regular and decaffeinated coffee, may not make the press
“love” you or your organization, but it will keep them from
getting sleepy, and give the proceedings a more casual air.
Ditto on lunch and breakfast. Reporters need to eat! Many
top public relations firms routinely do press briefing breakfasts at restaurants convenient for reporters.
• Set up a press table near the entrance to the news conference, where you can greet arriving journalists. Make sure you
have enough press kits (see description below) and other
background materials for each journalist. Have spare pens
and paper available. Have a complete list of invited media
and check them off as they arrive. Also make sure to sign in
any reporters attending who are not on the list. Keep track of
every media representative there, and use the information to
update your media list.
Let the journalists know where you will be during and after the
proceedings. Make your speakers and guests available for postconference interviews, in person and by phone.
• After the press conference, phone those invited journalists
who did not come and see if they would like to schedule an
interview. Offer to send over, by messenger, a copy of the conference press kit and a transcript of your speaker’s remarks.
Also, many radio stations will be especially receptive to conducting an interview over the phone with one of your speakers.
• Make sure your office is staffed before, during, and after the
conference. Have a phone number at the conference site
where your office or the media can reach you if necessary.
• Ask yourself every question that could possibly be important,
and prepare yourself for every possible problem. Is there parking nearby for the attendees? Are there enough phones easily
accessible to the media? Are rest rooms available? Do your
microphones work? Is there water by the speaker’s podium?
Are the slides for any video presentation you may have pre-
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Long-Term Media Work
pared in the projector right side up? Do you have two copies of
the video or audio tape you are going to play in case one of
them breaks? Rehearse your news conference as if it were a
performance—which, in many respects, it is.
The news availability
A news availability is a miniature, or abbreviated, press conference. It is much less formal than a full-scale conference.
Whereas a news conference is the “simultaneous announcement
to all media of a major event or study,” a news availability is set
up to make representatives of your organization “available” to
answer the media’s questions. Availabilities can be held in conjunction with something as important as the release of a major
study or the publication of a book. The goals, schedule, and
checklist for a news availability are the same as for a conference.
To conduct an availability, you invite the media to come and
ask questions or interview your spokespeople during a set period of time. Your speakers will be available on a much more
casual—but still official—basis throughout this period. Ask the
media to “drop by” at their convenience during this time.
Sometimes this low-key approach is much more successful than
a conference. Informal availabilities are particularly appealing
to journalists if they feature a well-known public figure who will
only be in town for a few days.
The press kit
Press kits should be reserved for news conferences and other
events at which you will want more detailed information on
your organization to be available, and for journalists who
request additional information. It is entirely appropriate to
mention in your releases that background materials are available upon request, but don’t send them out unsolicited.
Press kits generally contain your organization’s most recent
news release, background information on the organization,
biographies of key personnel, photos when appropriate,
informational fliers or brochures, and copies of other articles
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Media How-To Guidebook
that have been written about your organization and its events—
anything that will help the reporters, editors, and producers do
a well-informed story. No more than eight items should be
included—four to six is best. The press release goes on the right
hand side. A sample of other media coverage of this issue or
your organization that appeared in the last year in a credible
newspaper can go on the left side of the press kit, to show journalists the type of story you are looking for.
Public speaking at a press conference—or anywhere
There’s no reason that speaking to the public should be traumatic or nerve-wracking. As long as you’re prepared, you should
be able to face any encounter, whether it’s a speech, a news
conference where you’re fielding questions from dozens of journalists, a one-on-one interview, or a live television appearance
where a microphone and mini-cam have been shoved in your
face “for comment” on a specific issue.
If your organization is responsible for setting up the event at
which you will be speaking (rather than reacting to the media’s
request for information), you must determine early on the form
your presentation should take. Is a news conference the most
effective way of communicating your organization’s objectives?
Would appearing on a talk show or doing an interview for a feature article be more effective? Do your homework before making any decisions.
Once you decide on the appropriate venue for communicating
your information, you must prepare to face the audience you
have chosen. Below are some tips on putting your best face and
voice forward in any situation that requires public speaking.
• First do some intellectual preparation. Think about your organization’s objectives and decide what you want to accomplish
through your speech. What is the overall impression you want
your audience to come away with? What are the main points
you want to get across? Emphasize and re-emphasize them in
your public speaking.
• How much time will you have to get your points across? Who
will be in the audience, and what is the best way to communi-
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Long-Term Media Work
cate with them? Different audiences require different
approaches. Keep all these questions in mind as you prepare
your remarks. Also, what sorts of tough questions can you
anticipate from the interviewer or audience? Be prepared for
these.
• Rehearse in front of a mirror or with a friend or colleague. Ask
the person rehearsing with you to critique your performance.
Time yourself and shorten or lengthen the talk if necessary.
• Warm up. People spend a great deal of time and money exercising their bodies and very little working out their voices.
There are numerous voice exercises that can be done every
day, with no pain, discomfort, or difficulty. Any inexpensive
book about vocal exercises will cover warm-up techniques.
Once you’ve made them part of your daily ritual, you’ll wonder
how you ever spoke before.
• Dress in comfortable clothing, but make sure your attire is
appropriate for your audience. Generally, you should dress in a
business-like manner if you are discussing matters you want to
be taken seriously.
• Arrive early so that you won’t feel rushed and anxious, and to
give yourself an opportunity to take in your surroundings.
Never keep an audience waiting, whether it’s the public or the
media.
• Relax. Go for a walk beforehand, or take 10 deep breaths just
before you go on.
• Breathe. The biggest mistake most people make when speaking
to journalists or to large groups is the assumption that somehow a single point must be made in a single breath. Relax and
pace yourself. The vast majority of people talk too fast. If you
are reading from a prepared script or statement, mark on each
page places where you should pause, breathe, and then go on.
Besides giving you a chance to compose yourself in the face of
potentially hostile questions, it will give the appearance of
thoughtfulness and concern about your issue.
• Don’t speak until you see the whites of their eyes. Give yourself time to look around the room and take things in. Look at
your audience. If it’s an interviewer, look her in the face. If it’s
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Media How-To Guidebook
a large group, keep your eyes on the crowd. Eye contact is
important. Experts suggest that maintaining eye contact with
an individual for three to five seconds before looking to the
next person is the key to making people feel that you are talking directly to them.
Many prominent speakers have the benefit of a Teleprompter
to make it seem as if they have memorized their speech; you
probably will not. If you are giving a prepared speech, keep
your place with your finger if needed. Follow the text, find
your spot, remember a couple of sentences, then look up and
speak. Don’t talk into the page. Whether you’re working from a
prepared speech, an outline, or notes, never read your material
to the audience; speak to them directly.
If you are suddenly called upon to speak impromptu or to
answer an unsolicited question, look the person in the face.
This gives the appearance of confidence, assurance, and
knowledge of the subject you’re addressing—even if you aren’t
feeling that way at the moment. Never show your nervousness
to the press or public.
• Refrain from fidgeting. If you are standing, don’t randomly
wave your hands around; if you’re seated, don’t squirm. A good
way to see just how many nervous gesticulations all of us have
is to tape yourself with a video camera and watch the results
carefully. You’ll be amazed at how many unconscious gestures
you make while speaking. There are times when a movement
of the head, a glance of the eye, or a gesture of the arm will
help make your point—but use those gestures sparingly.
• Always smile. A smile, especially if it’s in response to a hostile
question, can make points for you. A frown or sneer will likely
count against you. Smiling on TV is important. Studies show
people are drawn to people who smile.
• If you are being interviewed for TV (not live), stick to the two
or three main points you want to get across. They can only
broadcast what you say. If the reporter keeps the microphone
in front of you, hoping that you’ll say more, it’s OK to just keep
quiet. Eventually he will have to ask you another question.
Don’t worry about silent time on tape; they’ll edit it out.
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Long-Term Media Work
• Enjoy yourself. If you’re answering a reporter’s question, you
are clearly expected to have some bit of knowledge that the
reporter does not have access to. Enjoy that power. If you have
been asked to speak before a group, they obviously consider
you to be the bearer of wisdom. Relish that feeling. Your performance is all in the mental attitude you bring to bear.
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Media How-To Guidebook
The Long-Term Media Plan
The planning stage is perhaps the most important one in successful public relations, and the one most often ignored. Media planning should be an integral part of overall project development.
Too often, an organization realizes how important media relations
are to the success of an event or program, but fails to make the
resource commitment needed to carry through with a plan.
Because the effects of media work are hard to quantify and often
come over time, convincing a staff or board of directors to assign
scarce staff time and money to media can be difficult. So be prepared to present the media component of a program early in the
planning stages, and try to outline the short- and long-term
effects of your media plan. The plan should be realistic, taking
into account the budgetary limitations of your organization.
The scope of a media plan can vary widely, from setting up publicity for a single performing arts event to laying out a five-year
plan for increasing the visibility of your organization. Whether
the goal is influencing public policy on welfare, getting new
clients for a health center, or selling out a benefit concert, your
publicity efforts should fit in with and clearly articulate the longrange goals and public relations priorities of your organization.
An organization’s media coordinator must be knowledgeable and
understand the aims of the group, be up-to-date about programs,
and be reliable as a writer and occasional spokesperson.
Walk back through section one of this guidebook and give yourself more time. Increase the suggested six hours a week to twenty
hours a week or consider hiring a part-time or full-time staff person. When preparing a media plan, organizations should ask
themselves these questions:
• What are you trying to convey through your campaign? What
are your goals—increased visibility, changing public opinion,
damage control after a bout of negative publicity, increased
ticket sales? Define them up front.
• How much will the media campaign cost? Budget your time,
extra staff time, and the cost of everything from stationery,
postage, and printing to travel expenses for getting subjects to
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Long-Term Media Work
and from interview sites. This is a key step. Are your goals
realistic given the budget for your campaign?
• How much time will the campaign take? Budget your time,
including extra time for mistakes and unexpected problems.
Include disaster time and have back-up systems available. By
planning ahead for disasters, you can keep them from destroying your entire timeline. For example, if you keep your media
list (see below) with contact phone numbers on the hard drive
of your computer, have at least one back-up disk stored in a
separate location. Update your backups on a regular basis. If
you maintain certain files or lists only on paper, make sure
you have a copy of them as well. Never have just an original of
anything; never send out original documents, photos, or tapes
to anyone.
Sample long-term media plan
The following sample media plan is for features and calendar
listings. For news stories, follow the guidelines in section one of
this book.
For events, you will normally have to do two types of media
work. You’ll have to get the word out to the public to attend
your event through calendar listings, PSAs, advance interviews,
and features. You’ll also have to do outreach to journalists to get
them to attend the event and do a post-event story. Both of
these types of media outreach are covered in the following
example.
Special event is opening or taking place on September 1.
May 15—three and a half months out: Send a brief release
announcing the event to monthly and other long lead-time
press, as well as to select TV talk shows. Most monthlies work at
least three months out for editorial features. Major daily newspaper Sunday sections are also locked up early; major features
are planned far in advance. Send calendar sections of monthlies
and in-flight airline publications a short calendar listing with
photo, if available. Supply monthlies with potential feature suggestions and angles.
May 30—three months out: Make follow-up phone calls to edi-
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Media How-To Guidebook
tors and writers of monthly publications. Call TV and radio stations and ask about possible interviews and talk shows. What
types of guests do they book, and how far out do they schedule
them? If any of your contacts hasn’t received your information,
send it again. Ask if the media outlet is interested in doing a
feature story or calendar listing. Let them know when to expect
further details. Make any necessary updates to your media list.
Good publicists are constantly updating and fine-tuning their
media lists.
July 1—two months out: Send release to daily and weekly publications and TV and radio stations announcing casting, further
production details, celebrities, or items of special interest, and
suggesting additional feature ideas.
July 15—six weeks out: Make follow-up phone calls to confirm
potential features in Sunday newspaper sections and appearances on TV and radio talk and interview shows. Begin scheduling interviews with event principals.
August 1—one month out: Send invitations to those journalists
you would like to have cover the event. Include an RSVP date
and follow up with a phone call if they don’t respond. Send calendar listings and photos to calendar sections of daily and
weekly newspapers. Develop a public service announcement
(PSA) for TV and radio stations. Send to PSA directors and follow up with a phone call to confirm receipt.
August 15—two weeks out: Interviews on radio and TV and in
print begin to appear; photos appear in weekly calendar sections prior to opening of event.
August 23—one week out: Call TV and newspaper assignment
desks. Make the call quick and to the point. Ask if they have
received information on your upcoming event. If they have not,
or cannot locate it, send it again by messenger or fax. Put in a
request for camera coverage and photographers. If you are brief
and polite, they will thank you for the call and tell you when to
call back and confirm. Inquire about any special arrangements
you will need to make for camera and/or taping crews.
August 31—the day before: Call TV assignment desks again. If
they haven’t promised you coverage, now is the time to find out
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Long-Term Media Work
if you’re going to have cameras there. If they have promised
coverage, now is the time to find out exactly when and where
they will be arriving.
September l—opening day: Call the assignment desks of TV stations that have indicated they may cover the event and confirm
coverage. You may very well have lost your cameras to a more
important breaking news story. If you’re still scheduled for coverage, thank them and let them know where you can be reached
in case of a change.
September l—preparation for showtime: Set up a press table
with a list of attending media, press kits, and light snacks, if
appropriate. Be available to shepherd media to appropriate
spots and answer questions.
The preceding is a very basic media campaign outline. With a
few adjustments it can be an appropriate template for many situations in which long-term planning is needed. For events with
short lead times, fast-breaking news, or unforeseen exigencies,
the above time line would change. However, the individual
activities would remain basically the same. Treat your media
work as you would a battle: attack, retreat, and follow up.
Following up is especially important; many newsworthy ideas
never make it into print because the publicist didn’t undertake
a solid follow-up effort. When everything is said and done, hold
an evaluation meeting with key representatives of your organization.
Commitment and concentration
How you choose to commit your resources will vary according
to the audience you’re trying to reach. A two-minute spot on
the evening TV news may take months of preparation and networking to obtain—and will be worth it if that audience is the
right one for your information. A 1,500-word feature in a major
daily paper will take perhaps two months of your time; the same
article in a limited-circulation magazine, perhaps a few weeks.
Each type of media requires a different approach and differing
amounts of effort. Each reaches a different audience, and presents information in a different way. In any media plan, one
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Media How-To Guidebook
Measuring Success
The evaluation process should be an
integral part of your media work.
Someone once said that success is a
journey, not a destination.
That is particularly true when it
comes to evaluating the success of
a particular media campaign. There may
be certain immediate and obvious successes—getting a large number of people to
attend one of your events, or scheduling a
television interview with a spokesperson
from your organization. But did you sell
out that benefit concert because of your tireless phone calls to the media, or because the event featured
someone whose fame was spread by word of mouth? Did that
TV interview come about because of your media savvy and
fearless pitching, or because the station was interested in
doing the interview anyway? The answer is probably the
combination of the two.
How do you know if the news you are releasing is reaching
its targets in the media? How do you know if the media is
dispersing the information you have released to them? And,
finally, how do you know what the public’s reaction is to that
news?
Gauging media coverage can be divided into three categories:
• The amount or volume of media attention—how many
articles have been printed, and how many TV or radio
mentions have been aired about the event you’ve been
trying to get coverage for?
• How successful were you in staying on message?
• The direction of the media coverage you got—how have
people reacted to the information you dispersed; how
effective was your message?
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Long-Term Media Work
should concentrate efforts on the most effective method for
reaching a desired audience. Clear definition of goals, commitment, and resources is important. Focus on your desired
results, concentrate on your plan, and organize and evaluate
accordingly.
Tips for gauging media success
• Keep track of every article, calendar listing, and photo that
appears in the press, and every mention or interview on TV or
the radio. For the print media, there are clipping services
available, at various costs, that will cut out, label, and send to
you every article mentioning your organization, event, or key
words that you specify in advance. Even for a small nonprofit,
this expenditure can be well worth the money. Organizational
staff members will see the major coverage, but you may never
see the full-page reprint of your news release in the weekly
newspaper two counties away unless you subscribe to a clipping service.
Clipping services can keep an eye out for articles mentioning
your organization on a local, statewide, national, or international level. If you subscribe to a clipping service, add it to
your media list. Receiving your news releases will help keep
the service apprised of what key phrases and names to look for
when searching for your articles.
TV and radio coverage is generally planned in advance and the
air dates known to the principal parties concerned. Some stations will generously provide you with a tape of your coverage,
especially if you pay for it and give them a blank video or
audio tape. However, it’s usually better to plan on taping such
coverage on personal recording equipment as it is aired.
Occasionally stations will keep transcripts that you can
request copies of. Video clipping services also exist, but they
can be very expensive.
• Ask the public to do something. Whether you’re writing copy
for a PSA or calendar listing or giving an interview to a journalist, include a request for the public to respond in a specific,
verifiable way.
• Are your short-term and/or long-term goals being achieved?
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Media How-To Guidebook
Publicity is the business of generating interest in and attention
around a specific incident or event. Overall public relations is
the long-term impact of numerous publicity campaigns on the
public’s perception of your organization or cause. For instance,
if your group advocates for animal rights, and several of your
individual attempts to draw attention to animal experimentation get media attention over a period of months or even years,
the long-term public relations benefit is that you have become
a news source on that issue. Publicity is short-term. Public
relations is forever.
• Is the media calling you? If a member of the media calls you,
she considers you a news source. There is no greater gauge of
successful media contact than that. When the media calls you
for comment, do your best to make yourself available.
Publicists often make the mistake of calling journalists for no
reason, in a vain attempt to “cultivate contacts” for future
story ideas they want to pitch. Journalists call only when they
want information.
Be certain to include the internal effects of any media success
in your overall assessment. That is, good publicity can be as
much an internal morale booster as it is a means of relating to
the public. Reproduce your clippings and circulate them to your
staff and members, and to the public through your mailing list.
Make reports of radio or TV appearances and circulate these as
well. Announce achievements at your board meetings, and keep
the staff and leadership apprised of your successes. If you’ve
gotten a particularly good story printed, you can have the clip
blown up (like theaters and restaurants do with good reviews),
and set it up where members and visitors can see it.
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The Media List—
Building Relationships
Publicity novices are often intimidated by the thought of creating or obtaining a media list; but with organization, persistence,
and a telephone, anyone can put one together.
After you have completed the steps set out in section one of
this book, you will have a basic media list. A well-maintained
list with information about each reporter is better than a large
list.
However, no matter how current or sophisticated your list is, it
won’t be an effective tool for dealing with the media unless you
take the time to make personal contacts. How do you establish
rapport? Start by introducing yourself. If you’re just setting up
a media list, send an introductory letter to everyone on that
list. Enclose your business card or even a pre-printed Rolodex
card for their files.
In San Francisco, Media Alliance sponsors social events at
which journalists and members of the community can interact
in a casual setting. You may want to check in your community
for similar opportunities. Also, the first time you provide a
writer or editor with a story or news tip, you have established a
level of rapport with that person. Make use of it, and expand
upon that initial contact.
Another good way to establish contact with the media is to
watch for articles about your issue. Write to journalists or producers to let them know that your group is concerned about a
particular issue. Tell them you’re happy to see that they’re covering such an important issue. Use the letter as an opportunity
to introduce your organization and its mission. Send an information packet along as well.
While journalists get a lot of exposure, they generally don’t get a
lot of feedback. Because they are sensitive to both journalistic
standards and strokes to their ego, chances are good that if you
write a simple letter to a journalist praising a story, he will
remember you when you call back with a story idea. Use per-
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Media How-To Guidebook
sonal cards rather than letters typed on letterhead. Positive
reinforcement is a good way to establish rapport.
Setting up the media list
Computer databases are particularly efficient tools for keeping
media lists up to date. However, there is no reason that a file or
notebook cannot work as well. Organize your list by publication, wire service, or TV or radio station. Include the following
information for each contact:
• Name
• Affiliation (publication, station, freelancer, etc.)
• Title (editor, reviewer, producer, host)
• Mailing address (Is it different from that of her affiliation?)
• Specialty (What does this contact cover?)
• Phone and fax numbers and email addresses
• Stories they have done on your organization or issue
• Deadlines (When do your contacts need the information by?)
• Do they use photographs? If so, black and white or color?
• When does the publication or program appear (weekly, daily,
monthly, other)?
Because each media campaign is aimed at a different target audience, you will have to select appropriate contacts from your list
for each project (see below for a description of common media
contacts). Code your lists for easy selection. For example, “R”
might signify a beat reporter and “PR” might stand for a public
affairs director. Be sure to include the following outlets in your
list:
• Daily and weekly newspapers. List the editors for the various
sections and include appropriate reporters and columnists.
• Magazines. Include local magazines as well as national ones
that cover your sphere of interest.
• Wire services. Wire services put out a daily log of press events,
and all major media subscribe to at least one service in order
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to access this information.
• Community, ethnic, and alternative publications, and college
papers.
• Specialty newsletters. Churches, unions, political and professional groups, and a wide variety of hobbyists all have publications that are specifically targeted to their groups.
• TV and radio stations. Include the names of news directors,
assignment editors, public affairs directors, and appropriate
producers and reporters. Don’t forget cable TV and micro radio
stations.
• Online publications. During the last five years, online publications have proliferated. Do a search on Yahoo or another search
engine to begin developing a list of the Websites that cater to
your target audience.
Common media contacts
Editor: Coordinates and assigns stories for her section of a newspaper or magazine. City editors handle news assignments for the
urban area; publications may also have editors responsible for
entertainment, arts, sports, business, the environment, etc.
Producer: Electronic media’s equivalent to an editor.
Assignment Desk Editor: Coordinates the day-to-day assignment
of stories. Particularly strong contact to make with TV stations.
Calendar Editor: Responsible for events listings, announcements, and, with few exceptions, a vital source of free publicity.
A one-page release specifying just the basics of your event is the
most effective way to communicate with this overworked and
underappreciated contact.
Public Service Announcement (PSA) Director: Contact at radio
and TV stations responsible for airing PSA and free-speech messages. Use proper format (see section on PSAs on page 74).
Reporters: In the print media, reporters are writers. On TV and
radio, they’re the voices you hear reporting the news, and generally the main gatherers of that news. Some report on specific
topics (such as health, the environment, or transportation), oth-
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Media How-To Guidebook
ers are generalists. It’s important for you to have a handle on
each reporter’s specialization. Cultivate a stable of writers, both
staff and freelance, who know your organization, understand its
purpose, and who have the respect of editors and producers.
Sometimes it is most effective to approach a reporter or writer,
get her interested in your story, and have her “pitch” it to her
editor or producer. As an unbiased third party, the reporter’s
input will add credibility to your pitch.
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Free Do-It-Yourself Media
Public access to the airways
According to the Federal Communications Act of 1933,
broadcasters must “serve the public interest, convenience, and
necessity.” Exactly how they must do this is not spelled out, but
a series of rulings and court decisions seem to indicate that
radio and TV stations must give a certain amount of air time to
the public.
In recent years however, the FCC has taken a turn to the right,
deregulating the industry and leaving accessibility up to the
“free market.” Consequently, the FCC cannot be counted on to
protect community access to the airwaves. In response to deregulation, some stations have cut back on public affairs programming to reduce operating costs. Many stations which used to
offer viewers the opportunity to reply to station editorials or
state their opinions in free speech messages no longer do so.
The amount of time a station makes available to the public
varies, and some stations are clearly more community-minded
than others. Nevertheless, all stations must comply with the
minimal FCC requirements that still do exist or risk losing their
operating licenses. To meet FCC requirements, stations offer several public access formats, including public service announcements (PSAs), community announcements or events listings, and
public affairs shows. Generally, the public affairs or community
affairs division of a station is responsible for public access programming.
In all of the above, the word public means free. If your
announcement complies with the requirements of the station’s
public affairs office, promotes a non-commercial event, is for the
public good, and is submitted in the proper manner, your message can make it onto the air easier than you might imagine—
and for free.
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Media How-To Guidebook
Public service announcements
Public service announcements—known as PSAs—are generally
20-, 30-, or sometimes 60-second announcements about an
upcoming event for, or a service provided by, a nonprofit organization or other non-commercial sponsor. PSAs are free, and
all stations allot a certain amount of time for them.
On the national level, you may be familiar with some very
sophisticated PSAs, like the numerous anti-smoking, AIDS-prevention, and anti-drug “commercials” produced by the
Advertising Council, which is the public service wing of the
advertising industry. Most nonprofits write their own PSAs and
submit them to a station, to be recorded by someone at the station and then broadcast. This is known as live copy.
You may also submit pre-produced PSAs—radio or video—for
possible air play. Not all stations accept prerecorded PSAs, so
confirm which stations do before you invest any time or money.
If you submit a prerecorded tape, always send a print out of
what is on it along with a press advisory summarizing it. A busy
public affairs director will want to review the script before taking the time to check your tape.
While producing your own PSAs allows you to control the quality of the announcement, you must still conform to the station’s
particular requirements. You must also use professional equipment. Home video cameras may have become a national craze,
but they are not acceptable for recording a PSA for broadcast.
Have a professional do it.
Some public affairs directors will give you feedback on your
PSA idea before you invest time and money in production. Also,
once they’re familiar with your organization, many stations will
allow you to use their facilities to produce your PSAs. In some
cases they will even do them for you for a reasonable fee, or for
free. Get to know the public affairs directors at the stations you
would like to obtain public access on. This person is an important contact worth considerable time and effort.
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Long-Term Media Work
FOR IMMEDI
ATE RELEAS
E:
September
11, 1998
Contact:
Andrea Buff
a (415) 54
6-6334
PUBLIC SERV
ICE ANNOUN
CEMENT
BILINGUAL
EDUCATION
30 Seconds
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and succee
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of Proposit
ion 227, th
do to make
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For more in
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call your
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Parent Line
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at (415) 24
pal or the
8-1809.
75
Media How-To Guidebook
How to write and submit a PSA
Submit your copy so that it arrives at the station at least three
weeks prior to the date you would like it to air. Station PSA
directors are inundated with requests. If they are not familiar
with your organization, send along a brief letter with background information. Explain why you think this PSA is worthy
of air play, phrasing it in terms of its importance to the general
public.
Submit two or three versions of your PSA, timed for 20, 30 and
60 seconds. Submit your copy double-spaced with standard
margins. Put your 20- and 30-second PSAs on the same piece of
paper, but use a separate sheet for 60-second spots. Read your
PSA out loud and time it to the second.
In the same way you head a news release (see page 27), include
“For Immediate Release” at the top of your PSA, followed by the
media contact’s name, phone number, and, in this case, the fax
number if available. Below this type “Public Service
Announcement,” followed by a title line. Also include the suggested time frame during which you would like your PSA to run.
K.I.S.S.: Keep It Short and Simple. Don’t use words that are difficult to pronounce. If the PSA includes unfamiliar or difficult
to-pronounce words, include the phonetic spellings.
Although styles of PSAs will vary, it is generally standard to
mention your organization’s name at least once and to end with
a contact phone number for the public to call. Repeating the
phone number a second time is recommended if time permits.
Use active verbs. Write to be heard, not read. PSA style is less
formal than news-release style. Be conversational and clear.
Your audience won’t have a chance to go back and read an
unclear sentence. Before you submit a PSA, or any copy that is
going to be read aloud over the air, rehearse it in front of someone. Is your message understandable? If your trial audience
doesn’t get what your PSA is about, you have not succeeded. Do
it over.
The station is not required to air your particular PSA. Its air
time is allotted on a space-available basis, and there is a great
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Long-Term Media Work
deal of competition for it. If the station doesn’t air your PSA this
time, don’t complain; perhaps it will next time. If it is aired,
drop a brief note of thanks. A brief phone call to the public
affairs directors of key stations may help bring your PSA to the
top of the pile.
You may submit a graphic illustration to accompany a PSA for
television. Usually this is a color slide with your organizational
logo prominently displayed. It will appear on screen as a backdrop while your PSA is being read. Here are some tips to get
your visual image on the air with your PSA:
• Submit a standard 35mm color slide with a horizontal image.
Remember, the print media prefer vertical pictures; TV likes
horizontals.
• The subject of your slide should be instantly identifiable and
pertinent to the copy being read. It may just be your logo; if
not, the image should include it, if possible. If the PSA is promoting a specific event, list the dates and, most importantly,
the phone number to call for more information.
• About 15 percent of your image will be lost to the viewer. Make
sure the important part of your image is centered and does not
“bleed” off the edges of the slide.
• Label the slide in case it gets separated from your PSA copy,
and attach it in a small envelope to the PSA copy or tape.
• Ask the station’s PSA director to keep a slide with your organizational logo on file for future PSAs. They may or may not,
depending upon storage space or attitude. Don’t expect any
slides submitted to TV stations to be returned, so keep your
originals and send copies.
Public access cable TV
Another possible source of free air time is public-access cable TV,
which in the last few years has become more and more common
around the country. The types of organizations involved in, and
the degree of quality in the production of, various public access
cable TV shows varies greatly. However, it is worth exploring in
your market. In some instances you may be able to literally pro-
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Media How-To Guidebook
duce your own show for public access TV and get your message
to the public without any intermediaries. While the audience for
public access TV is not as large as that for commercial cable or
network television, it is generally a faithful audience. The viewers
will watch for your organization on a particular public access station if they have seen you represented there before.
Public-access stations may provide TV studios, production equipment, and training for groups wanting to produce PSAs, talk
shows, documentaries, and other types of shows. Call the individual stations in your area for more information about their equipment and training. And be prepared to wait a few weeks for your
turn to use the equipment—public-access facilities and programming time are often in great demand.
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Media Advocacy:
Documenting Unfair Coverage
Sometimes, despite your best efforts, the media will either
ignore your issue or present it in a biased fashion—especially if
your issue seriously challenges the status quo or corporate and
government interests. In that case, in addition to your standard
media work, you’ll have to do some media advocacy. As Media
Alliance’s Latin America/Caribbean Basin Committee explains in
the book Impress the Press, “The media are businesses. As
such, they are susceptible to pressure from consumers, advertisers, and the government. Much as we lobby Congress, concerned
citizens can lobby for better media coverage . . .”
Following are tips for documenting unfair coverage:
Study coverage. Define a time period of four to six weeks, during
which you will concentrate on specific media outlets and track
the coverage they give the issue that you feel deserves attention.
For instance, if your organization is concerned with the imminent drilling of an offshore oil well, document the history of that
project. When was it approved? Did the media cover the community’s concerns over its proposal? Has the media noticed the
project’s progress? What sources did they speak with for
information for their stories? Was anyone from your organization contacted? If not, ask why.
Document your case. Before you criticize a media outlet for its
coverage, or lack thereof, on a particular issue, have all the
facts. You must provide specific examples and patterns of coverage that indicate out-and-out error, bias, or bad reporting. Cite
specific journalists and the days or times their stories ran.
Tally the results of your study and put them in writing. Once
you have fully documented the results of your study, send them
to the editors or news directors of the media outlets you have
surveyed and request a meeting. Your request may not be granted, but you will be noticed. Avoid emotionalism in your letter:
Just present the facts. Lay out your survey statistics in a clear
and professional manner and let them speak for themselves.
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Media How-To Guidebook
Then state why you feel the coverage is inaccurate or biased.
Several days after the materials have arrived, call and push for a
meeting with the highest level of the editorial staff.
If you are granted a meeting, choose your best spokesperson or
people to represent you. (It might be most effective to have several people attend. In addition to your representative, you may
want to have community representatives and/or spokespeople
from other concerned organizations.) Rehearse your presentation, including your closing, which should be a specific request
for what you want from the media outlet.
At the meeting, present yourself as an authority on this issue.
Make it clear that for future stories about the issue, you or your
organization should be contacted as one of the sources and
called for comment or background information. Appeal to the
media’s desire to present balanced coverage. Try to get an agreement from the outlet, but don’t present a list of demands.
Remain calm and end the meeting on as friendly a note as possible.
After the meeting, immediately send a letter to each participant
outlining the topics discussed. Thank them for their time and
concern.
Send the results of your survey to other media outlets, especially the alternative press. Other media outlets will pick up on
your survey, if it is professionally done, and perhaps make a
news story of it or use it as a guideline for their own coverage.
Either way, you are drawing attention to both the issue and
your organization.
Watch for results. Keep monitoring your target outlets. Is the
coverage changing at all? Let the media outlet know how you
think it’s doing, especially when coverage has improved. Positive
reinforcement is always a good idea.
For more information on media advocacy campaigns, check out
the Media Alliance Latin America/Caribbean Basin Committee’s
book Impress the Press.
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Media Ownership
Section III
The Context: Media
Ownership
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Media How-To Guidebook
Free the Media
As Ben Bagdikian reports in his preface to The Media Monopoly:
. . . a small number of the country’s largest industrial corporations has acquired more public communications
power—including ownership of the news—than any private businesses have ever possessed in world history.
Nothing in earlier history matches this corporate group’s
power to penetrate the social landscape. Using both old
and new technology, by owning each other’s shares,
engaging in joint ventures as partners, and other forms of
cooperation, this handful of giants has created what is, in
effect, a new communications cartel within the United
States . . .
At issue is the possession of power to surround almost
every man, woman, and child in the country with controlled images and words, to socialize each new generation of Americans, to alter the political agenda of the
country. And with that power comes the ability to exert
influence that in many ways is greater than that of
schools, religion, parents, and even government itself.
Bagdikian’s words are chilling to anyone trying to make or access
media at the approach of the new millennium. The links between
corporate power are important to look at and understand, even
for someone whose media campaign was a success. For campaigns that did not succeed, and when documenting unfair coverage, it is essential to look at ties to ownership of the media. There
are some issues which will not receive coverage because they are
in direct conflict with the corporate agenda at these media outlets.
Still, activists, journalists, and citizens will persist in getting their
voices heard. A list of stories that made it into print despite
attempts at censorship are available at Project Censored’s website, www.sonoma.edu/projectcensored/.
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Following is an article about media ownership written by Mark
Crispin Miller and appearing originally in The Nation magazine
on June 3, 1996. Miller, a professor at New York University, has
undertaken a heroic effort to chart the ownership of media outlets around the country. This project, The Project on Media
Ownership, is an important resource for anyone planning media
today. Through an extensive chart, available online at
www.mediaownership.org (beginning in June 1999), Miller and
his colleagues give an eagle’s eye view of the conglomeration of
media power. For all references to the chart in Miller’s article,
please refer to that website.
The National Entertainment State
by Mark Crispin Miller
Reprinted with permission from the June 3, 1996 issue of The
Nation magazine. For subscription information, call 1 (800)
333-8536. Portions of each week’s Nation magazine can be
accessed at www.thenation.com.
The chart [we have generated is] just a partial guide to our contracting media cosmos. It demonstrates the sway of the four giant
corporations that control the major TV news divisions: NBC,
ABC, CBS and CNN. One of these four corporations is a defense
contractor involved in nuclear production, and two are mammoth
manufacturers of fun ‘n’ games. [Westinghouse was a defense contractor, but it recently sold its defense holdings and changed its
name to CBS.] Thus we are the subjects of a national entertainment state, in which the news and much of our amusement come
to us directly from the two most powerful industries in the United
States. Glance up from the bottom of each quarter of the chart,
and see why, say, Tom Brokaw might find it difficult to introduce
stories critical of nuclear power. Or why it is unlikely ABC News
will ever again do an expose of Disney’s practices (as PrimeTime
Live did in 1990); or, indeed, why CNN—or any of the others—
does not touch the biggest story of them all, i.e., the media
monopoly itself.
Focused as it is on those colossi that control the TV news, this
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Media How-To Guidebook
chart leaves out other giants: Rupert Murdoch’s News
Corporation, John Malone’s Tele-Communications Inc. [TCI], and
Sumner Redstone’s Viacom, none of which are (yet) telejournalistic powers. Likewise, the octopus that is S.I. Newhouse has not
one tentacle appearing here, since he mainly glides within the
world of print, darkening magazines and publishing concerns
instead of newscasts. There are also foreign players, like Sony
(Columbia, Tri Star), whose holdings are not charted here.
We therefore need further maps of this contracting universe:
More big pictures—and also local maps, so that folks everywhere
will know who owns their daily paper, TV and radio stations,
cable franchise, and city magazine. We need industry-specific
maps, to show who owns each culture industry: The newspapers,
the magazines, the book business and music business, cable,
radio, and the movie studios—as well as the major online services
that help us get around the Internet.
Such maps will point us toward the only possible escape from the
impending blackout. They would suggest the true causes of those
enormous ills that now dismay so many Americans: The universal
sleaze and “dumbing down,” the flood-tide of corporate propaganda, the terminal inanity of U.S. politics. These have arisen not
from any grand decline in national character, nor from the plotting of some Hebrew cabal but from the inevitable toxic influence
of those few corporations that have monopolized our culture. The
only way to solve the problem is to break their hold; and to that
end the facts of media ownership must be made known to all. In
short, we the people need a few good maps, because, as the man
said, there must be some kind of way out of here.
Certainly the domination of our media by corporate profiteers is
nothing new. Decades before Mr. Gingrich went to Washington,
there were observers already decrying the censorious impact of
mass advertising. The purveyors of “patent medicine”—mostly
useless, often lethal went unscathed by reporters through the
twenties because that industry spent more than any other on
print advertising (just like the tobacco industry a few years later).
The electrical power industry attacked the concept of public ownership in an astonishing campaign of lies, half-truths, and redbaiting that went on from 1919 to 1934. That propaganda drive
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Media Ownership
entailed the outright purchase of newspapers (e.g., the Copley
chain) and the establishment of trust-oriented stations for the
NBC radio network.
Although the utilities’ program was exposed, the corporate drive
to eat the media was not halted by the New Deal. Indeed, as
Robert McChesney tells us, the Communications Act of 1934
killed the soul of U.S. broadcasting, defining it forever as commercial. Thereafter, with ever fewer exceptions, radio and then
TV were subject to the market-driven whims of the sponsor, who
by the early sixties had on the whole made pap of both the news
and entertainment sold through the electronic media. Some of
the brightest talents spoke out memorably against the drift:
Edward R. Murrow scored the trivialization of TV news, and Rod
Serling, before his exile to The Twilight Zone, publicly condemned the fatal softening of TV drama by the likes of U.S. Steel
and BBD&O.
Bad as they often were, those earlier manipulations of the media
were only a foretaste of what is happening now. Here no longer is
a range of disparate industries, with only certain of them dangerously prey to corporate pressure, or to the warlike caprice of
some Hearst, Luce, or Northcliffe. What we have now, rather, is a
culture gripped in every sector by an ever-tightening convergence of globe-trotting corporations, whose managers believe in
nothing but “the market” uber alles.
This new order started to get obvious in the spring of 1995, when
the FCC summarily let Rupert Murdoch off the hook for having
fudged the actual foreign ownership of his concern (an Australian
outfit, which Murdoch had not made clear to the busy regulators). The summer then saw ABC sucked into Disney, CBS
sucked into Westinghouse, and [later] Ted Turner’s mini-empire
ingested by Time Warner: a grand consolidation that the press,
the White House, Congress and the FCC have failed to question
(although the FTC is finally stirring).
With the mergers came some hints of how the new proprietors
would henceforth use their journalists: Disney’s ABC News apologizing to Philip Morris—a major TV advertiser, through Kraft
Foods—for having told the truth, on a broadcast of Day One,
about P.M.’s manipulation of nicotine levels in its cigarettes; and
CBS’s in-house counsel ordering the old newshounds at 60
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Media How-To Guidebook
Minutes to bury an explosive interview with whistleblower Jeffrey
Wigand about the addictive practices of Brown & Williamson.
Such moves portend the death of broadcast journalism, as does
the radical cost-cutting now being dictated by the networks’ owners. And yet some good seems also to have come out of this
annus horribilis of big waivers, big mergers, big layoffs, and big
lies. Suddenly, the risks of media monopoly are now apparent not
just to the usual uptight minority of activists and scholars but,
more and more, to everyone. People want to know what’s going
on, and what to do about it. The time has therefore come to free
the media by creating a new, broad-based movement dedicated to
this all-important mission: antitrust.
Although it will certainly go to court, this movement must start
with a civic project far more arduous than any spate of major
lawsuits. In fact, there can be no such legal recourse yet, because
there is no organized mass movement that would endow such
actions with the proper standing. Since the bully days of Teddy
Roosevelt, the drive against monopoly has always been initiated
not by solitary lawyers but by an angry public. “The antitrust
laws are enforced in one period and not enforced in another, and
the reason is pure politics,” notes Charles Mueller, editor of the
Antitrust Law & Economics Review. Such laws can take on the
media trust, says Andrew Schwartzman of the Media Access
Project, only when “the general public helps convince the prosecutors in the federal government that the future of democracy
depends on freedom in the marketplace of ideas.”
Thus this movement must start by getting out the word—and
there’s the rub. Our problem has no precedent, for what’s monopolized today is no mere staple such as beef or oil but the very
media whereby the problem could be solved. Indeed, the media
trust suppresses information and debate on all monopolies. “You
and I can’t get the antitrust laws enforced,” says Mueller, “and the
reason we can’t is that we don’t have access to the media.” To
fight the trust directly, then, would be to resume the epic struggle
that gave us our antitrust laws in the first place—one that the
robber barons themselves soon halted by buying interests in the
magazines that had been attacking them. With reformist monthlies like McClure’s thus safely “Morganized,” the muckrakers
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Media Ownership
were quieted by 1912, as their vehicles were pulled into the same
formation that now threatens to contain us all. Today’s antitrust
campaign will therefore have to be a thorough grassroots effort—
one that will work around the mainstream media so as to free them
by and by.
This movement will depend on those idealists who still work within
the media: Those who would do a good job if they could, but who’ve
been forced to compromise, and those working from the margins—
the stalwarts of the alternative press and of groups like Fairness &
Accuracy in Reporting. All should henceforth pay attention to
developments within the different culture industries. The American
Booksellers Association, for instance, filed an antitrust suit against
Random House for illegally providing discounts to the national
bookstore chains and retailers. Those in other industries should
likewise make a fuss. With the help of independents in the film
business, the Justice Department ought to take a look—again—at
monopolistic practices in Hollywood. Creative Artists Agency, for
instance, yearly packages a number of obscenely pricey movies for
the studios, in each case demanding that the studio either use the
agency’s own stars, writer(s), and director—and pay them the
salaries dictated by the agency—or take a hike. Since CAA itself
grabs the commissions on those salaries, its way of doing business
represents a highly profitable conflict of interest.
That scam has also helped to jack up ticket prices for the rest of
us—and the movies are a lot worse for the practice, which pairs up
talents not because they might work beautifully together but just
because they profit CAA. Likewise, the ABA’s showdown with
Random House has far broader implications, for the extinction of
the independent bookstores could insure as well the disappearance
of those titles that are not best sellers, and whose authors will not
be up there trading ironies with David Letterman of Westinghouse
[now CBS], or grinning, between commercials, through a segment
of GE’s Today Show.
That the media trust costs everyone is a fact that this new movement must explain to everyone. The public, first of all, should be
reminded that it owns the airwaves, and that the trust is therefore
ripping everybody off—now more than ever, since those triumphant
giants don’t even pretend to compensate us with programs “in the
public interest.” Likewise, we should start discussing taxes on mass
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Media How-To Guidebook
advertising. Such a tax, and the tolls on usage of the airwaves,
would yield enough annual revenues at least to pay for public
broadcasting, whose managers would then no longer have to try
to soothe the breasts of savage Congressmen, or sell out for the
dubious largesse of Mobil, Texaco, and other “underwriters.” In
1994, according to Advertising Age, corporations spent a staggering $150 billion on national advertising. That year, it cost just
$1.8 billion to pay the full tab for PBS and NPR.
And yet, to most Americans, the economic arguments against the
trust may matter less than its offenses against taste. Grossed out
by what they see and hear, a great majority have had their unease
exploited by the likes of Pat Buchanan and Bob Dole, and
ignored, or mocked, by many on the left. This is a mistake. The
antitrust movement should acknowledge and explain the cultural
consequences of monopoly. While the right keeps scapegoating
“Hollywood”, this movement must stick to the facts, and point
out that the media’s trashiness is a predictable result of the
dominion of those few huge corporate owners.
Thus our aim is certainly not censorship, which is the tacit goal
of rightist demagogues like Ralph Reed and the Rev. Donald
Wildmon. The purpose, rather, is a solution wholly constitutional—and, for that matter, sanely capitalistic. We would reintroduce
a pleasurable diversity into the corporate monoculture. Some
crap there always is, and always ought to be: It is the overwhelming volume of such stuff that is the danger here inside the magic
kingdom.
Where just a few huge entities compete, ever more intently, for
the same vast blocs of viewers, and where the smaller players are
not allowed to vary what we’re offered, the items on the screens
and shelves will, necessarily, have been concocted to appeal to
what is worst in us. It is this process, and not some mysterious
upsurge of mass barbarism, that will explain the domination of
the mainstream by the likes of Murdoch, Jenny Jones, Rush
Limbaugh, Judith Regan, Arnold Schwarzenegger, Howard Stern,
Charles Barkley, Gordon Liddy, Butt-head, and Bob Grant.
Although, thus far, the right alone has decried the media’s nastiness, when it comes to antitrust, those pseudo-populists would
never walk the walk, since they themselves are part of the behe-
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Media Ownership
moth: Limbaugh’s TV show belongs to Gannett/Multimedia, Pat
Robertson’s Family Channel is partly owned by TCI, and Bob
Dole—despite his mock attack on Time Warner—did his best to
give the giants all they wanted. Those on the right would not dismantle the monopoly, which they would like to run themselves
(and which to some extent they do already). It is therefore the
left’s responsibility to guide this movement, since on this issue it
is actually much closer to the people.
Such an effort will require that the left stop being too hip for its
own good, and start to honor the concerns of the appalled
majority. “Two-thirds of the public thinks TV shows have a negative impact on the country,” notes U.S. News & World Report in
a major poll released in April [1996], “and huge majorities
believe TV contributes to social problems like violence, divorce,
teen pregnancy, and the decline of family values.” This is no
hick prejudice but a sound mass response to the routine experience of all-pervasive titillation. “The greatest anxieties are
expressed by women and by those who are religious, but,” the
pollsters found, “the anger is ‘overwhelming and across the
board.’”
Of course, there are some deep antipathies between the left and
those uneasy “huge majorities”—some out there don’t want to
be disturbed by anything, and the general audience may never
go for feminism, and may forever cheer for shows like Desert
Storm. Nevertheless, we have the obligation to make common
cause with the offended—for what offends both them and us has
all alike been worsened by the downward pressure of the trust.
The ubiquitous soft porn, the gangsta manners, the shock jocks,
and the now-obligatory shouting of the F-word are all products
of the same commercial oligopoly that is also whiting out the
news, exploiting women, celebrating gross consumption, glorifying guns, and demonizing all the wretched of the earth.
There are pertinent movements under way. In early March [of
1996], there was an important and well-attended Media &
Democracy Congress in San Francisco, organized by the
Institute for Alternative Journalism, whose purpose was to unify
the forces of the progressive media to fight the trust before it
can rigidify beyond democracy. Soon after, in St. Louis, the first
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Media How-To Guidebook
convention of the Cultural Environment Movement was held;
founded by George Gerbner, the CEM is committed to the broadest, toughest possible campaign for media reform.
The arousal of mass interest would raise possibilities for major
legal action. The FCC could be served with a class-action suit for
its neglect of the antitrust laws—as could President Clinton for
his failure “to see that [those] laws are faithfully executed.” It
might be feasible to sue them on First Amendment grounds.
Although the giants themselves cannot be nailed for censorship,
the movement could, says antitrust attorney Michael Meyerson,
sue the U.S. government for collusion in the corporate move
against our First Amendment rights.
While such distant possibilities await broader public support,
some current cases show what could be done. Although Time
Warner’s acquisition of the Turner Broadcasting System won the
blessing of the FTC, there were some strong petitions to deny the
agency’s approval. Looking further ahead, we must begin undoing
what the media trust itself accomplished through the
Telecommunications Act of 1996, which was devised to rush us
in the wrong direction (and which the media—both mainstream
and alternative—largely failed to examine). For a start, we might
consider Chester’s notion of an eventual move to force the four
colossi to divest themselves of their beleaguered news divisions.
For PR purposes, GE (say) could still boast its affiliation with
NBC News—a most impressive civic contribution—but the annual budget for the news would come primarily from the same sort
of trust fund, based on corporate taxes, that would pay for PBS.
Right now, however, what we need to do is tell the people who
owns what. This campaign of public information must involve the
whole alternative press, as well as unions, churches, schools, and
advocacy groups—and progressives on the Internet, which is still
a medium of democratic promise, although that promise is also at
risk. Indeed, the same gigantic players that control the elder
media are planning shortly to absorb the Internet, which could be
transformed from a thriving common wilderness into an immeasurable de facto cyberpark for corporate interests, with all the
dissident voices exiled to sites known only to the activists and
other cranks (such renovation is, in fact, one major purpose of
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Media Ownership
the recent telecommunications bill). Therefore, to expect the
new technology to free us from the trust is to succumb to a
utopian delusion.
Which is another way of saying that there is no substitute for
actual democracy—which cannot work unless the people know
what’s going on. And so, before we raise the proper legal questions and debate the legislative possibilities, we need simply to
teach everyone, ourselves included, that this whole failing culture
is an oversold dead end, and that there might be a way out of it.
Copyright (c) 1996, The Nation Company, L.P. All rights
reserved. Electronic redistribution for nonprofit purposes is permitted, provided this notice is attached in its entirety.
Unauthorized, for-profit redistribution is prohibited.
For information on the Media and Democracy Congress and the
Cultural Environment Movement, check out their websites at
www.mediademocracy.org and www.cemnet.org. Also recommended by the editor:
•
Stay Free, http://metalab.unc.edu/stayfree
•
The Media Monopoly by Ben Bagdikian
•
Who Will Tell The People by William Greider
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