Media Relations forEmployees of Palm Beach County

WHY IS THERE A REPORTER

IN THE LOBBY?

Media Relations

County Policies

The Ten Commandments

The Interview

MEDIA RELATIONS 101

How we as individuals and collectively as a County interact with the media. Our daily actions are accountable to the public. It is this accountability the media pursue when reporting our activities.

MEDIA RELATIONS DEFINED

One responsibility of government is to communicate with residents about county services and issues that may affect their lives. One of the best ways to communicate is through the media; therefore, an important role of government is to establish working relationships with the media that make communication more effi cient and effective. We see media relations as a partnership.

GOOD MEDIA RELATIONS IS GOOD BUSINESS

Keep it HOT!!!

HonestOpenTimely

MEDIA RELATIONS…HOT!!!

Inform in times of crisis

Increase awareness of County services

Attract new residents/businesses

Provide understanding of County policy

Convey proactive image of the County

WHY WE NEED THE MEDIA

Employees at liberty to speak with mediaThose who do speak represent the County, not themselvesInformation should reflect policyKeep personal views personalFollow up with email to staff and/or Public Affairs and your supervisor

MEDIA GUIDELINES

County PPM CW-0-011

Purpose of County’s media relations policies and

program:

Ensure the accuracy of the information released

Assure no preferential treatment is given to

one reporter

Avoid dissemination of confl icting information

Minimize the adverse eff ects of rumors

COUNTY POLICY

We are responsive; we talk to the media

We are an open book

We tell the truth

We are polite

We correct mistakes

We do not “blacklist”

We do not go “off the record”

MEDIA RELATIONS PHILOSOPHY

We recognize the media is just one

way to talk to our community

We understand the value of free

publicity

We can’t be perfect

What we give to one, we give to all

MEDIA RELATIONS PHILOSOPHY

I Mislead

II Lie

III Misrepresent

IV Break the confidence of the

reporter

V Clutter the media with useless

info

THE 10 COMMANDMENTSTHOU SHALL NOT…

VI Write or speak evasively

VII Give inaccurate information

VIII Hide when news is bad

IX Pester the media with your

story

X Repeat the negative

THE 10 COMMANDMENTSTHOU SHALL NOT…

InformativeEducationalTimelySignificantUniqueInterestingOf human interestWhatever you can convince a reporter it is

WHAT IS NEWS?

Press Release – factual information

Photo Opportunity – notification of visual event

Media Advisory – notify the media of an immediate event

MEDIA TOOLS

Fact sheet – attached to news release;helpful when there are a lot of statisticsor complicated information.

News conference – to announce significant or breaking news. List speakers. Record questions that needto be answered at a later time.

MEDIA TOOLS

Use a descriptive headline-make your release stand out

-action oriented headline-avoid over capitalization

Most important information first-Who, What, Where (including

address),When, Why, How?

WRITING A NEWS RELEASE

Anticipate reporters’ questionsMinimize use of jargon

-attribute acronyms in first reference

When possible add a quoteTwo pages or less

WRITING A NEWS RELEASE

Include contact information-should be familiar with the

release and ready to answer questions

Proofread- A.P. Stylebook (abbreviation, punctuation, capitalization)- verify spelling of names and

verify correct titles

WRITING A NEWS RELEASE

Timely, timely, timely- for planned events, send a

couple of days before- send the news the day it

happensNumber pages, mark the end

(###)Marketing vs. News Release

WRITING A NEWS RELEASE

Publish a new product every single day

Driven by deadlines; relentless scramble

against the clock

Little time to research and check all the facts

Tough to represent all sides to a story

Size of news hole varies daily, advertising

dependant

UNIQUENESS OF NEWS

“News” is the FIRST word in the term news

release

Volume of releases received daily – most

discarded

Quality of releases – accuracy, simplicity

and clarity

Have listed information contacts

It will not necessarily appear exactly as

written

THE NEWS RELEASE

County overstaff ed and underworked

Well paid with 4 billion dollar budget

Nice, new working facilities

No more than 40 hour work week

Doing a good job or just meeting expectations

PUBLIC PERCEPTION VS PUBLIC REALITIES

Reporters are even more:

Cynical

Suspicious

Likely to have watchdog role

Likely to hold government accountable

PUBLIC PERCEPTION VS REPORTERS

THE INTERVIEW

•Preparation

•Tips

An interview is not a simple conversation

Fact finding exercise to collect information,

insight, interesting viewpoint not commonly known

Casual approach used to disarm…who?

Reporter monitors everything said, unsaid

Observes gestures, tone of voice

WHAT IS AN INTERVIEW?

This is the most common of all question sequences for all types of interviews.

In this sequence, the interviewer begins with broad, open-ended questions and moves to more narrow, closed-ended questions.

The interviewer may also begin with more general questions and gradually ask more specifi c questions.

INTERVIEW APPROACHES: FUNNEL

This question sequence is eff ective when an interviewee needs help remembering something or to motivate an interviewee to talk.

In this sequence, the interviewer begins with narrow, closed-ended questions and moves to more broad, open-ended questions.

The interviewer may also begin with more specifi c questions and gradually ask more general questions.

INTERVIEW APPROACHES: INVERTED FUNNEL

The Diamond question sequence combines the Funnel and Inverted Funnel sequences.

Used when dealing with topics interviewees may find painful or diffi cult and therefore are reluctant to discuss.

Begin with specifi c, closed-ended questions about a situation similar to the interviewee's, then ask general, open-ended questions about the interview, and finally ask specifi c, closed-ended questions.

INTERVIEW APPROACHES: DIAMOND

In this sequence, all questions have the same degree of openness.

Also called the "string of beads" questions sequence, the Tunnel sequence allows for little probing and variation in question structure.

It can be useful for simple, surface information interviews, but not for in-depth interviews.

INTERVIEW APPROACHES: TUNNEL

Credibility index (average: 61.5)Supreme Court Justice: 81.3Member of the Armed Forces: 73.0Ordinary citizen: 71.8Network TV news anchor: 66.8Local news reporter: 65.8Local elected offi cial: 65.2 (PBC 40% ???)Head of a local department: 62.9Public relations specialist: 47.6TV or radio talk show host: 46.6

WHO SHOULD SPEAK?

Repeated question

Either/or

Hypothetical/What if…

False facts

Interruptions

Silence

Critics say…

REPORTER TECHNIQUES

Straight news

News feature

Profile

Investigative

TYPES OF INTERVIEW STORIES

What are the goals of the interview?

What will the tone be?

What are your key messages?

Do your homework!

Prepare background information

Rehearse…call staff

THE INTERVIEW: PREPARATION

Answer the question!

Share your message early and often

Avoid jargon

Remember: you are talking to residents

Be friendly & courteous

Silence is golden

THE INTERVIEW: TIPS

Keep your cool

Bridging

Don’t repeat the negative

Never “off the record”

Never “no comment”

THE INTERVIEW: TIPS

Listen – hear the whole question. Understand it. Clarify if needed.

Pause – Select key points. Keep eyes

up.Present – Give direct answer first. Give

support explanation. Stop when you’ve answered the question to your

satisfaction.

THE INTERVIEW: TIPS

If you fail to:Take chargeAnticipate questionsDevelop key messagesStick to the factsKeep calmTake the interview seriously

THE INTERVIEW: FAILURES

Assume the camera is always running

Speak clearly, concisely

Look at the reporter, not the camera

Know your key messages

Dress conservatively

Avoid contrasts in color; no sunglasses

TV TIPS

Ask if the interview will be live or on

tape

Use conversational tone

Speak concisely

Don’t ramble. Don’t try to fill “dead air”

RADIO TIPS

Use media as a communications tool

Use media to “straighten the record”

If County is open and helpful, stories will be

more positive

If County is not open, stories will be more

negative

Reporters want access to people and

information

TIPS FROM REPORTERS

The elements of news

Sometimes, just the facts

What’s not said

What you know right now

To scoop the competition

To get the story straight

To feed the beast

WHAT REPORTERS WANT

Is it important enough?How damaging is the error?

Do nothingAsk for a clarification, correction, etc.Talk to the reporterTalk to a supervisorGo to the competition

TO CORRECT OR NOT CORRECT

Correction: Usually a factual error. Your goal is

to have the correct information printed or aired.

Clarifi cation: Confl icting or confusing

information was originally presented and this

clears it up.

Omission: Something relevant to the story

(usually a fact or name) was left out and is

now included.

Retraction: To some media outlets, this is a legal

term. On advice of legal counsel, the outlet

admits an error and apologizes. This is usually done in a large box marked “Retraction” placed where the original was.

TO CORRECT OR NOT CORRECT

If the media doesn’t get the facts from you, they will get the “story” from

someone else.

ALWAYS REMEMBER…

If you help the media when they call you, they will help you when you

call them.

AND…

USEFUL PUBLICATIONHTTP: / /WWW.PBCGOV.COM/PUBLICAFFAIRS/PUBLICATIONS.HTM

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QUESTIONS