MEDIA RELATIONS

1. MEDIA RELATIONS

2. What is media relations? • Media relations targets audiences through media coverage • Can be either responsive or proactive • No direct cost for receiving coverage • But there is some loss of editorial control

3. Value of media relations(…versus ads and other media) • Credible • Third-party endorsement • Cost-effective • Objective and trusted

4. What media relations can do • Influence your audiences towards action • Enhance your organization's reputation • Promote your organization's services • Provide third-party endorsements • Make your organization the "go to” Resource • Establish positive relationships that can "smooth over" difficult times

5. Types of Media Coverage • Print • Television • Radio • Web and Other New Media

6. What makes a story newsworthy • Relevance • Proximity • Timeliness • Occurrence-based • Calendar-based • Uniqueness • Human Interest • Entertainment Value • Celebrity • Controversy

7. Building Better Media Relations • Conduct research • Who cover industry • What angle • What kind of reporter • Respond to calls • Prepare for interviews • Maintain ongoing relationships 6-7

8. Creating a SuccessfulMedia Relations Programs Involve internal media relations personnel in strategy Develop in-house capabilities Use outside counsel sparingly 6-8

9. Online Media Strategy • The powerful internet • Expansion of power to individuals • Do not discriminate legitimate and phony news • Monitoring content • Web-based communication platform • Blog • Handling negative news

10. Role of the news release • Summarizes the story by answering • Who • What • Where • When • Why • How • Written just like a newspaper article

11. Pros & Cons of News Release • Pros • Traditional and expected media tool • Provides crucial information in written form • Con • Has become spam • Too often places organizational priorities above those of target audience • Individual pitches may be more effective

12. Top 10 media tips • Know your media • Be prepared • Make it easy for reporters • You’re always “on the record” • It’s okay to not have all the information • Give up editorial control • Don’t ask to see a story in advance • Media relationships are symbiotic • Respect deadlines • Respond NOW

13. Media Interview Tips Keep answers short Avoid “No comment!” response Listen to each question Use “bridging” to move closer to your objective Use anecdotes, analogies, simple stat Keep body language in mind 6-13

14. WRITING FOR THE MEDIA

15. WHAT IS NEWS?? • French term – du jour – “of the day” • News value decline as a function of time • Significant and interesting to all “when dog bites man, that’s typical. When man bites dog, that’s news” • News is s/thg new, up to the minute, unusual, sensational or s/thg which will affect many people and is therefore in the “public interest\’

16. KEEPING IT SIMPLE • Understood b average person • “Use short sentences. Use short paragraphs. Use vigorous English, not forgetting to strive for smoothness. Be positive, not negative.” • Writing simply is extremely difficult

17. KEEPING IT SIMPLE • Fog Index by Robert Gunning – to measure readability/simplicity • Sample +-100 words. Count the exact no • Divide no of words by no of sentences • Count the number of words of three or more syllables • Step 2 + step 3 • Multiply by 0.4 to calculate your Fog Index If 10 –readers at least year 10. If above 12, writing will reach only highly educated audience. Above 15, most likely don’t have audience

18. KEEPING IT SIMPLE • Over use of words • Lower socio-economic group the poor • Prior to the commencement before • We anticipate we expect • The fact that that • Microprocessor-based computer functions functions

19. KEEPING IT SIMPLE • What, where, why,how,when,who • Print/electronic – almost every story answer these 6 key points: • What happened • Where it took place • When • How • Why it occurred • And to whom

20. TIMING • Deadlines – the latest possible time at which the media can accept material • Most morning n/paper put together between midday and around 10pm. Completed by 5pm • 6 pm TV news – by 4 pm start editing and putting together the news • Embargo – giving the time b4 which the story cannot be published/broadcast Embargoed until 9pm, Wednesday, July 6

21. TIMING • Note key periods of days (Hari Raya, Chinese New Year, Deepavali, Christmas) • Not advisable to release major new stories • Sunday announcement/ news events receive major coverage on Monday media • Use facsimile or e-mail to send material. Follow-up by phone

22. Media style – familiarize. Placing material • Intro / lead - <25 words, news comes first, active voice Built for just RM10,000, a mini-jet aero plane will be given its maiden flight over KLIA next Sunday by a 21-year-old apprentice engineer who constructed it in his backyard • Tense – use media reporting style of everything in past tense except direct quotes within quotation marks

23. Attribution – all statements to the media must be attributed “…………,” president of the YXZ organization, En. Ali said. The XYZ organization has warned that if …. • Editorialising – stick to facts and attribute all comments to a source – a named person or the organisation • Elegant variation –don’t dress up simple ideas with mumbo jumbo

24. Abbreviations – use all titles and terms in full on first usage; subsequent references can be abbreviated • Cliches – don’t use cliches. Be original leave no stone unturned, put our shoulder to the wheel • Tautologies– watch for repetition new innovation, hasten quickly, new initiative • Ambiguity –watch for in joining up sentences and paragraphs Newspaper advertisement “For sale, bulldog. Will eat anything. Very fond of children.”

25. Punctuation – don’t over punctuate. Avoid colons and semi-colons and use commas only where necessary • One idea to one sentence, and one main point to one paragraph.(25, 15-40) • Quotable quotes –look for simple, down-to-earth direct quotes to use in your media statements. Quotable quotes are picked up and used