Engaging
the Media
Media Relations Guide for Community Agencies
Who works on the news?
Reporter: researches and reports news
Columnist: has more latitude on content, expresses opinion
Editorial writer: writes opinion-pieces
Editor: assigns stories and has final say on content
Radio host: directs a call-in show where members of the public ask guests questions
Journalists often have their own biases when writing a story. Enlist
their support for your organization by giving them good information
rooted in your community and an interesting story to tell.
While many reporters will have their own area of expertise, such
as education, you may also be interviewed by a general assignment
reporter who does not specialize in any particular area and therefore
may have only limited knowledge of the subject.
Types of Media
• Print Media
Daily newspapers: hard news, features, columns. Reporters are
often more experienced. Deadlines by 5-6 p.m.
Community newspapers: softer news. Reporters tend to be more inexperienced.
Printed once or twice weekly. Often give you 1-2 days for response.
• Electronic
Taped radio: short interview with reporter taking clips of your
comments to be later included in their recorded report. As the report
is taped, your quotes may be run 2-3 times in "news every 30
minutes" spots during the course of a day.
Live radio: usually for talk shows or call-in shows. Interviews
also run 3-10 minutes and are more detail-oriented and can be more
aggressive.
Taped television: much like taped radio, only the reporter wants
to show a person being interviewed (a “talking head”).
It’s important that you give many short, simple messages as
TV rarely shows individual quotes lasting more than 15-30 seconds. |
