Strategy for media
Fact sheet for press work
GENERAL
1. Press work is important. If a conference is not only held but also reported, 60.000 people may hear about it instead of 60. So it's worthwhile to develop the skills. Someone should make it (one of) his/her main job.
2. Become the 'owner' of direct democracy in your region/country. React on anything that happens in your country with press releases. This will make you a logical speaking partner for the media.
3. Position yourself clearly in a debate. For example, position yourself as the counter position to the position of the government. That makes you a logical speaking partner for the media.
4. Become the expert. Know all the basic facts you need to know. That's not so hard; journalists normally know quite little about a specific theme like initiative & referendum. "In the land of the blind, the man with one eye is king" (Dutch saying).
5. Create 'obvious stories', a narrative for journalists. Give them opportunities to jump in the debate. Think in newspaper headlines. Try to think from the perspective of the journalist, his media organisation and his audience: given who they are and what they know, what is interesting for them? Call a journalist and ask him: in what way could this and this topic be of interest to you?
6. Create news yourself. Start campaigns with a clear goal and with start and end dates. Organize a press conference with well-known politicians to speak for your theme. Make a opinion poll on 'How many XXX think the citizens should have a direct say in politics'. Organize events with a high PR degree: photo opportunities, well-known names, exciting things. Just the kind of stuff that makes your own heart jumps just a bit too.
CONTACTS
7. Start early with developing a list or database of press addresses. Collect 'rich information' from the start: all addresses, phone numbers, gsm numbers, email, fax, and names and contact information of the journalist who is covering your theme. In most countries you have handbooks with press addresses (look in the public library). You can also ask a befriended NGO or the press office of your government to give you their press list.
8. Develop personal contacts to journalists. Make an appointment to speak informally about some things over coffee. Go to the press briefings, which every government holds regularly. Make notes of every conversation you have with a journalist.
INSTRUMENTS
9. Make a website which is attractive to journalists: fact sheets on topical matters and a press section with press releases and the GSM number of you as a press spokesperson - not only your email address: journalists know that by the time you read your email, he's already writing on another story. Put fact sheets online, especially on things, which are of current interest. (For example: soon the referendums on EU accession in the membership countries will be of general interest, as well as information on a referendum on the EU constitution. Upcoming Swiss and American referendums are also increasingly reported outside their countries.)
10. Send press releases on your own events or with reactions on anything that happens. Just keep sending if you get no reactions: your press releases may be filed and once something happens and a journalists opens his drawer and finds you are apparently THE active organization on this field, he will call you.
11. TV is less accessible than newspapers and magazines. And don't only think of the national press. Also think of:
# local media; most Europeans read a local newspaper
# advertisement-based house-to-house media; they just print about anything that you send them
# magazines from NGO's; they may be small but are read by active people who may join your campaign
# political party media; they are read by all politicians from that party and they are sometimes quite accessible (just accuse of them of not being open enough!)
# specialized media; they often simply everything that happens on their field
# alternative media (indymedia); they are more open
# small local radio stations; just call them and propose an interview around a topical item
# the Metro - the free newspaper spread in subways and trains around Europe - is extremely open to initiative & referendum and is widely read until page 17 bottom left (if the journey takes longer than 25 minutes…)
12. Write letters to the editor. That's easy. If you make your point in an original, clear and short (100 <= 200 words) manner, you have a great change of publication. Some newspapers have opinion pages for larger articles (of 800 up to 1500 words) for external writers. These pages have impact because the newspaper picked you because your article was really interesting. You have real space for a well argued-article.
13. Don't forget columnists. They can more easily write about something without hard news and their columns may be very well read.
PRESS RELEASES
14. Find out how media in your region/country want to receive press releases. In The Netherlands, faxes are far better read than emails. In other countries, it may be the other way around. (You can easily copy & paste hundreds of email addresses into one email and just send it. With most better faxes you can send one fax to hundreds or thousands of respondents with one push button; there's also fax software - e.g. WinFax - with which you can do the same through your PC/modem/phone connection.)
15. Send press releases timely. Timely is 3-2 weeks before the event. Repeat that some times up to the event. It helps if you start calling journalists 3-4 days before the event with the message: This is important because of so and so, what are you going to do with it? At the day of the event, you can send a new press release, preferably at the same time that the news happens (e.g. outcome of conference) reporting on the event for those journalists who are interested, but where not there.
16. Write press releases like they were articles. Give them a headline like in a newspaper, put the hard news in the first paragraph, and write it in such a manner that the journalists can always cut the last paragraph automatically if it should be shorter. Give subheadings to paragraphs. Put ready quotes of yourself in them (and you can give yourself great sound bites!) so that lazy journalists won't have to call you for a quote. At the bottom, below a line, you give information that a journalist should know but which should not be publicized: your GSM number, some facts on your group, etc. The total maximum is one page A4.
AND FINALLY…
Press work is something most people can just learn - if you simply begin doing it. If you follow the tips and ideas above, substantial success is practically guaranteed. And you will find out that the going in itself is the thing that constitutes fun. You learn and you get the pleasant feeling that you are making progress. For that good feeling, it's less important whether you reach the goal. If you have the feeling you are doing your best, you will already be a happy person, no matter what you achieve.
