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Does it seem that this has been an unusually LONG year. You're right! We gain 1 leap second on Dec 31 to make up for the slow wobble of the earth. So to use that extra free time you now have, here's a special edition of Contact! with some of the best ideas of the year.
Have you ever sent an NTS radiogram to your favorite reporter? Neither have I (yet). But wouldn't it be fun to try it and see what happens this month. The holidays are a great time to tell them Hello and that you appreciate their interest in ham radio.
By Bob Josuweit, WA3PZO
2005 was a banner year for amateur radio publicity, but there is always the possibility to have one more story appear in a local newspaper. Why not make it yours?
You may be reading this and saying to yourself that nothing ever happens around here. We don't get any hurricanes or other severe weather. We're not in earthquake country or even in an area where there are brush fires. Your conclusion might be that nothing happens in your location.
But it just may be there is news all around you! You only have to learn how to find it. The first thing you need to know is what is news? By definition it's simply information about recent events. Some examples in your neighborhood might be the fire across town, the opening of a new business, a new mayor being elected, or, yes, ham radio operators supplying communications.
Every news story consists of five pieces of information. They're commonly known as the 5 Ws. Who? What? When? Where? Why? If you can answer these questions you have the start of a news story.
The City Amateur Radio Club recently won third place in Pennsylvania as part of a national communications test. This sentence answers all 5 questions. Now you can provide additional information and finish the story.
But how do I locate news?
If your club is like mine, we begin meetings by going around the room and introducing ourselves. 'Hi I'm Bob, WA3PZO'. I'm Allen, W1AGP, etc. Now, let's add some excitement to the introduction. The Club President asks everyone to go around the room and tell the group what was your radio highlight over the past month?
The introductions might change to: "Hi, I'm Bob, WA3PZO, and I talked to all 50 states last month." I'm Allen, W1AGP, and some of my ham friends shipped some toys to those less fortunate along the Gulf Coast." I'm Bob, WM3PEN, and I'll be you're new club president next month. If you are listening carefully and taking a few notes you already have leads for three more stories. Just remember it's all about the 5 Ws.
Some events may lend themselves to have a ham radio connection. Take a look at the list below and indicate when there might be a local story you can tie into.
If you answered all of them you're right. Each one of these stories has a local interest if you present it to the news media correctly. The above stories can talk about preparation, training, preparedness, service to the community, normal communication failures, recognition for a job well done. There are eight stories - each with a different hook.
Being prepared...
We never know when a disaster is going to strike, but as a Public Information Officer you have to be ready to answer the reporter's question. Reporters are on deadlines and most of the time they can't wait.
Get to know what the local media outlets are. Find out which ham radio operators are interested in DX, emergency communications, etc. Know who can present amateur radio well to the public. Who has a decent looking radio shack? Make sure soda cans and trash are out of the picture.
Keep an eye out to promote ham radio. It's easier when you can answer the 5 Ws and provide a hook.
Two Surefire Ways to Craft Better Releases That See
More Ink
-- Straight from Top
Copy Editors
This information originally appeared in "Media Relations Insider," (Nov. 05) a supplement to the Bulldog Reporter newsletter. For a three-issue, no-obligation trial subscription to Bulldog Reporter, please call
1-800-959-1059 or visit www.bulldogreporter.com.
(As a PUBLIC Information Officer, your goal is to reach the Public. Too often we end up preaching to the choir and our work misses reaching NON-hams.)
The art of press release writing remains a challenging one for PR pros, according to several copy editors at leading pubs. From lousy grammar to boring copy to inaccurate info, these copy editors chime in on a wealth of areas where practitioners could sharpen their skills -- and win more ink and editorial attention in the process:
1. Keep the reader front of mind. "As a PR pro, you should think less about your group who asked you to write the press release, and think more about the person on the other end who's going to have to read it," says Mary Ellen Slayter, copy editor for the Washington Post. "It's true that your job is to get a message across, but if reporters have to look too hard for that message, then your point is completely lost." Her suggestion: "It starts with how the information is organized. And where it is and how easy it is to get to it. People are going to scan stories just like they scan press releases. So you want to make it as easy as possible for them to jump in and find the most important information."
Allure copy editor Catherine Hopkinson goes even further: "So many press releases are just too boring," she says. "Publicists may think that they've written a good release, but in reality, journalists usually decide to cover your pitch based on one sentence in your release. So you have to find that one interesting sentence that stands out and will strike someone."
"For example, if you're pitching a new brand of cat food and you have to get a journalist to read it, you don't want to talk initially about the nutritional details or about the new component--you want to tell the reader what this means to somebody who owns a cat," explains Mclntyre.
2. Cut the jargon. Another concern is widespread industryspeak that alienates general readers. "At BusinessWeek, reporters frequently cover certain industries and tend to adopt the jargon of that industry and then throw it into copy that's meant for general readers--and that's a constant struggle," says BusinessWeek deputy copy chief Harry Maurer. "There's also a tendency to adopt whatever 'buzz words' happen to be current at the time and throw those into the copy-- and these are professional writers I'm dealing with. In the press releases I see, it's the same thing. So much of it seems written thoughtlessly, in a hurry, as if the person didn't really care about the tool that they're working with, which is language. It's jargon-y, cliched and [rife with] grammatical errors."
So you have a killer press release. Your club or group just won the Dumpty prize for bringing about World Peace. Great! You send it in to the media and . . . nothing happens. Why?
Perhaps it is because you only did half of the job. You created a product, but did not check out the market for it. The most successful placements for media releases are not just sent to a newspaper, TV or radio station. Instead, they are sent directly to Tom at the Record Herald, Dick at DEF-TV and Jane at WQRP radio. In short, they are targeted to specific people who cover that beat.
It used to be that to find out who these people were, you either needed a copy of the newspaper staff listings, or called and hoped that someone might tell you the proper person. There were also commercial listings of media outlets and their staff. I use Bacon's media directory here all the time in looking up contacts. But there is another way.
As a PIO you are usually concerned only with a limited geographic area, and you probably know just which outlets you want to target. This is where the internet comes in. LOOK UP THE OUTLET AND THEIR STAFF. You can find out a lot about any media place by their website. Most importantly, you can find out just who is handling the type of story you are pitching and target your release directly to them. You can also often learn if they prefer a phone call, snail mail, fax or email. By keeping the reported/editor happy, you greatly increase the placements of your materials.
By Bill Morine, N2COP
1) Build a contact database not only of reporters and producers in your market, but the deadlines they have to write columns, book guests for appearances, etc. This will help get the word out in advance of the event itself, giving you and your organization more lead time.
2) -- a PR planning calendar for the next 12 months. Buy a 12 month at a glance laminated wall calendar for 2006 at an office supply store, along with different colors of water soluable inks. Assign colors to key events -- Field Day (blue), JOTA (red), SKYWARN recognition (yellow), Hurricane Awareness (green), etc. Then backtime the events using the same colors to build a PR campaign for each event.
In 1999, the ARRL Board of Directors unanimously approved the use of a new identity for the League. Accepting the recommendation of the Executive Committee, the Board emphasized the initials "ARRL" with the tag line "The national Association for Amateur Radio." The new identity was not a change in the legal corporate name, but was meant to de-emphasize the American Radio Relay League in correspondence and publications.
There continues to be situations in which, even with the best of intentions to get it right, that reporters mis-name the organization as the "National Association for Amateur Radio" or the "Amateur Radio Relay League." How can you get around any potential confusion easily? In speaking, simply add in two words...
ARRL -- which is the national association for Amateur Radio
When I use that phrase in interviews, everything seems to go fine. If I leave out the two words, then I usually have to clarify things twice. Try it.
While reporters are justifiably irked when a subject tries to control their story, most of us have times when we come to be uneasy about what might be the outcome of an interview. We wonder if their notes from the conversation are accurate and in context. It really would be nice to make sure a reporter does get the facts straight and quotes you accurately, especially if you have ventured into any technical or regulatory topics. So how can you check to see if they got it right? One technique is to say the following to a reporter:
"Hey, I want to make sure I make you look good and I didn't give you anything too confusing. Would you like to share with me what you have so far from this conversation?"
The key here is in your tone of voice. It must be clear you are trying to be helpful and not distrustful. Remember that our field IS confusing to many people and your job is to help the reporter understand. By taking this attitude, of being helpful and sure of clarity, you can avoid appearing to be trying to control the reporter while being sure to get your main points across once more.
By asking in this way, many reporters will actually share with you what is in the notes and what they have for quotes. If the reporter has misquoted you or it is out of context and misleading, take the responsibility on yourself. By saying, "I am sorry but I think that I spoke in such a way that could be misleading to your readers. What I meant to say was . . ."
By being helpful, taking the time to be clear about confusing areas and topics, and providing clear answers to questions, you should get the best results out of an interview