MEDIA TRAINING TIPS

The information contained in this report is the opinion of the

author based on his personal observations and years of
experience in both the media and as an expert media trainer.

Neither the author nor publisher assume any liability

whatsoever for the use of or inability to use any or all of the
information contained in this publication.

Use this information at your own risk. You cannot republish

or copy this information

1. Always get a business card from a journalist. Once they have departed
after the interview, you can call them to impart information you may have
forgotten about. If you can't get to the journalist, speak to their chief of
staff or producer.

2. Some clever people, when talking to journalists on their mobile phone, will
use the excuse of the signal breaking up to gather more time to ponder a
difficult question. Neat, but don't overdue it.

3. Try to avoid using that awful phrase, 'no comment'. At the very least, give
the media the reason why you can't comment as this provides the
journalist with something useful for his/her audience. It also gives a better
image of you as you don't appear arrogant or as if you're trying to hide
something.

4. Don't mimic the politicians and ignore the question. This is why their
credibility is always so low. Be seen to answer the difficult question but
stay general. Then, try to counter with some positive aspect and go very
specific. Paint a word picture for your audience.

5. Budget cuts mean that TV programs like The 7.30 Report may interview
you over the phone from interstate while a local crew is recording you on
videotape. It helps to have someone to look at but make that a work
colleague you don't know too well. Better still; use the sound recordist (if
there is one). This helps to avoid non-verbal messages the audience won't
understand.

6. The journalist may well arrive for the interview with a pre-planned answer
that he wants. You too can play that game. Henry Kissinger used to walk
into media conferences and announce: 'Does anyone here have any
 questions to go with my answers?'

7. Use a smile, chuckle or laugh to counter any ridiculous accusations. Use

the same technique if you try to put down the journalist. This latter
technique usually fails if attempted in a serious manner.

8. Use a media interview to counter any misinformation that may be already

out there. If you heard something wrong on a radio news bulletin just
before you record your TV interview, tell the journalist as he/she won’t
want to use material that is wrong – it’s not good for their career!

9. Radio has the most immediacy but video has the most potential power.
With most big stories, you probably heard it first on radio but remember it
mostly from the video footage you saw on TV or on the internet.

10. Electronic media - radio and TV - involve perceptions and image. Press is
more about facts as is the internet.

11. Five cardinal points for improving a media interview - Keep it simple. Be
concise. Have an agenda of your own. Remember your audience. Be
yourself.

12. Remember, the western news media may not be perfect. However, they
are absolutely fantastic when compared with some countries.

13. Answer a hypothetical at your own risk. Work on the basis that everything
you say to the media can be called up in the future. It's just so easy to
Google someone these days, and so fast!

14. Don't ask a journalist for the questions. Do ask them for an outline of their
questioning and, if they give you a general answer, try to get them to be
more specific. The more you know before the interview starts, the better
off you will be.

15. Think visually for TV and press. Have you any pictures, film, video,
models they could use? Is there a better location for the interview?

16. Doorstop interviews can be a nightmare. Try to avoid them until you are
more experienced. Remember that the journalists in a doorstop are
playing to opposition news directors as well as to their audience. Many a
career change has taken place as a result of some vicious questioning at
a doorstop interview.

17. Try to be proactive with the media and build a bank of goodwill with the
public. Then, if the brown stuff does hit the fan, you can draw down on that
bank.
18. Be animated in radio and TV interviews. This is particularly important for
radio as people have only their aural senses to rely upon.

19. In the media world, there are three things that don't have off buttons -
journalists, cameras and microphones.

20. Be friendly with journalists but not meek. They'll walk all over you if given
half a chance.

21. As far as media interviews are concerned, you don't have any personal
views. You represent something - that's why you're being interviewed.

22. A background briefing is a useful way to get some information out into the
public arena without it being sourced to you and/or your organisation.
Most journos will respect this technique as it means they still have a story.
Can't say the same about off-the-record agreements!

23. Avoid swivel chairs for an interview. They swivel and they often squeak.

24. Change your clothing if you’re going to be speaking to the media on a

regular basis. Doug Suttles, Chief Operating officer for BP wore the same
clothing for the first few weeks when hosting media conferences over the
2010 Deepwater Horizon oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico – it didn’t look good.

25. Never say NO COMMENT to the media - you could look arrogant and
deceitful. Tell them why you can't comment and give them something
useful for their audience!

26. As mentioned, be very afraid of going 'off-the-record' with journalists.

They're trained to repeat what they're told.

27. In any media interview, try to enhance your performance in much the
same way as we all seem to do when we have the floor with any group of
people, including family. Remember that it's just a conversation.

28. Focus on your audience through the journalist who, really, is just a
conduit through to them. The journalist, by the way, will never tell you that
because they like to think they are more than mere conduits.

29. While waiting for a journalist to arrive, if you expect a huge ego to walk
through the door, double your expectation and even then you could be
only half right. That's sometimes, of course!

30. Always prepare for a media encounter. Never, never go into battle with a
journalist before doing your homework.
31. Your grooming is important for TV (and newspapers, if a photographer or
video camera person is present) but obviously matters little for radio
interviews and even less for those conducted over the phone.

32. When talking to a journalist over the phone, work on the basis that you
were being recorded from the very first moment you spoke to him/her.
Don't rely on them to tell you that you are being recorded.

33. Think twice about using an Internet chat-room for a media conference.
Journalists mostly want to see or talk to you in person.

34. Avoid suit-speak, like ‘at this point in time' or ‘going forward; - really,
would you be going backwards from here?

35. Paint word pictures for television and especially for radio where fewer
senses are being use by your audience.

36. Give specific examples of your positive points - don't use typical PR
language that says very little and annoys the hell out of journos and the
public.

37. Don't start an interview until you're ready, despite any pressure coming
from the journalist.

38. Don't let a journo end the interview if you're not ready - either in a live
situation or pre-recorded.

39. If Dan Rather and his team at CBS couldn't explain stem cell research on
television and he pointed you to newspapers for the detail, take the lesson
on board with your own use of detail.

40. Never leave a media team unattended in your office. They can read
upside down or quickly reverse your whiteboard screen to reveal
information you thought was hidden.

41. Don't let the journo bait you if the interview is long and there are breaks
for film or video changes. Sixty Minutes has used this technique!

42. Use a comparison that your audience will understand rather than
meaningless figures. If you've spilt some oil, perhaps it's a cupful
compared with the swimming pool full of oil you've moved this year - that's
also a better balanced statement than saying we spilt 1,000 tonnes!

43. Don't use the interviewer's name. He/she may not be the person putting
the story to bed; it can look like you're excluding the audience; it's not
 natural to say the name in each answer and, finally, it often looks wanky,
particularly when politicians employ this technique!

44. When preparing for an interview, take a broad view rather than a narrow
look at the topic. This might be your first oil spill but it could be the
company's 5th this year or the industry's 10th this week and the journo may
well have that information to throw at you. You should be equally armed
with responses.

45. Make sure you give a journalist your business card so he/she knows the
correct spelling of your name and your title. If you have a name that could
be mispronounced, spell it phonetically on the back of the card. Some
clever people these days have one card with mobile phone number on it
and another without - that card is for the media!

46. Watch out for journos' bluff. Radio and TV journos especially use this
technique to throw you off guard and it often works because they look and
sound so confident and credible which can make you unsure of your facts.

47. Ask questions of the journalist, always. Who else has he interviewed?
What did that person say? Who else is he likely to interview? The journo
might not tell you (or might lie to you) but if you don't ask such questions,
you'll never hear the answers.

48. Work on the basis that the journalist will tell you as little as possible about
your rights as an interviewee. In fact, I don't think such rights have ever
been drawn up by the craft of journalism but that's what we teach you in
our training workshops. That's what we mean when we say Tame the
Media with our Help! More details at our
<a href="http://www.kelly.com.au/media-training/"> Media Training
Specialists</a> website

49. Are there times when you should walk away from the media and not talk to
them? Very few, in our opinion. If you refuse to talk to them, you lose the
opportunity to take part in, or be in charge of, the debate. And guess
what? The media will still run the story, with or without your input.

50. Use online media centers to provide background material for the
journalists. The days of the expensive "press kit" are numbered as more
and more media outlets take to the web to download their background
information, maps, hi-res pics or indeed, audio grabs of spokespeople.
Improving bandwidth now means that video can be used also in this way.
We provide these services as well as media training. (check out
http://www.kelly.com.au/ )
51. Use the snowball (or viral) effect to your advantage. Get a good story on
one arm of the media and watch the others pick up on it as TV monitors
radio while both of them monitor newspapers which in turn watch and
listen to TV and radio before they go to press.

52. Part of your website could be dedicated as a ‘hidden' crisis resource.

When the need arises, activate it with links on your home page and alert
the media to what it contains - relevant background information, company
emergency contacts and other information pertaining to the crisis - all
aimed at making the journalists' job, and your life, easier.

53. If you're not happy with the still pictures or TV footage that the media use
of you constantly, provide them with a Video News Release that contains
better images but give them a more valid reason for the package - up-to-
date plant shots, more modern uniforms etc. (We produce VNRs for
corporate Australia.)

54. Use any media monitoring services your company may subscribe to in
order to fully acquaint yourself about the issue and to be aware of
mistakes or misinformation that may be creeping into the debate. Don’t
forget Google.

55. Journalists are checking social media websites like Facebook to get
personal information, photos etc. Be sure, if you’re in the news, that your
site has appropriate content and not something that could be
embarrassing to you.

56. If you can't answer a factual question, promise to get that information to
the media outlet when the interview is finished - and then make sure that
you do, to eliminate the chance of them saying you didn't know the facts.

57. If the issue is big, and your company is big, don't make the mistake of
having too long an approval process for media releases. It will look like
you are hiding something and the debate will move on without your input.

58. Watch clothes for any TV or press gathering. Make sure you're not
clashing with, or blending into, the walls in your office or media conference
venue. It's a little hard to be taken seriously if you have a dark blue suit on
and you're in front of dark blue walls. (Those who remember the Australian
Kraft peanut butter crisis will know what I mean!)

59. Use CDROMS or DVDs to distribute any intensive graphics that might
help the media and the public understand your cause or issue. But, please
remember, television, radio and the internet want simplicity. If you really
need to explain E=mc2, use a press article.
60. Avoid talk back radio. It's too easy to be caught out by a surprise guest
that the program producer conveniently forgot to tell you about. Of course,
if you're confident enough to deal with that, go for it as it’s live!

61. Avoid doorstop interviews. They're dynamite. If you have no choice, use
the issue as an excuse to catch up quickly with the latest developments.
This buys you precious minutes to prepare. Then use the issue as your
escape route when you've said your piece.

62. At a media conference, don't keep looking at the tricky journalist. Look
elsewhere and seek questions from other parts of the throng. Remember
to address the whole group, not just the one asking you the question.

63. The power of the media runs in this order - TV, radio, press with the
internet threatening all three depending on age group. Unfortunately, the
degree of difficulty hasn't changed - it still runs TV, radio, press and
internet. Our workshops are geared to train you to handle all four arms of
the media.

64. Don't forget local media when an issue erupts in a regional area. The
metropolitan media may take up the bulk of your time, if the issue is big
enough, but when they leave you will still have the regional media to
handle and their slant could affect staff and authorities long after the issue
fades.

65. Female interviewees should be careful with jewellery. Indoor interviews

that are lit could reflect light off dangling earrings which can be a
distraction.

66. When talking into a microphone it's best to talk across it rather than into it
as this will reduce or eliminate any 'popping' sound on the letter 'p'.

67. Remember that any mistakes on internet copy can be corrected very
quickly - much more quickly than TV, radio or print, none of which are too
keen to make corrections anyway.

68. Wherever possible, provide the media with a precis list of

your main points on an issue. TV and radio are notorious for
their lack of research facilities (generally) - press are
usually better prepared when they come calling. In any case,
the reporter may have been diverted from another story and
have very little background information. This practice can
lead to your points being turned around and used in any
subsequent interview, so you're already exercising some
control before the interview actually starts - a good thing!
69. To maximise the chances of getting your points across,
make sure that not only do you have those points prepared
but that you actually bring them up during the interview,
regardless of the questions. Read those last four words one
more time - regardless of the questions!

70. If you can't answer the question, be honest and say so but
offer to get the correct answer once the interview is
finished - and remember to do that. Don't lie or try to bluff
your way through.

71. Make sure you allow enough time for proper preparation. It's
the most important aspect of a media interview. Just think
about it - you wouldn't do anything else in your work role
without thinking it through and preparing so why would you
do that with a media interview?

72. We always train that saying sorry can be a big plus, despite
what the lawyers might say about it. Ribena has taken the cue
by publicly apologising for mistakes in its measurement of
Vitamin C in its children's drink. In May 2007, the company
ran a media campaign to regain consumer trust after it lost
about $1 million through a 30% drop in Ribena sales after
being fined for making misleading claims.

73. If a TV crew shoot footage of your operation, remember that

most keep their "field" tapes for a week before recycling them
(several times). You may be able to purchase that footage from
the channel (or even get it for free). Even if you have to
buy the footage, it might be cheaper than hiring a crew to
shoot the same footage for you. Call the chief of staff to
discuss this idea.

74. Don't forget the engine room of the media is where the
faceless men and women of journalism are making decisions
on your interview/story. You have no control over these people
- just be aware they are there and can kill your story or
give it more time depending on how entertaining and informative
you are. That's right, entertaining is part of the equation!

75. Don't forget - journalists don't really care about YOU or

your organisation. They care about their careers and peer
group envy over getting really good stories.
76.
Kelly Communications has launched the 3rd edition of Managing the
Media. This reference work was Australia's first dedicated manual on
 media training when it launched in 1990. This latest global version
is a full multi-media e-book. More details at
http://www.kelly.com.au/media-training/media-training-ebook/ .

77. An article by Sally Young in The Age on how politics is reported (April
2007) said the media-savvy Prime Minister (at the time) was very skilled at
evading questions he didn't want to answer. John Howard does this by
challenging the relevance of the question, chastising the interviewer for
using a 'hypothetical' or making the interviewer sound impolite ("just let me
finish..."). Good tactics to take on board.

78. Apple has now sold more than 100 million iPods which is more than
enough reason for any company to seriously consider Podcasts for not
only internal use but external relations as well. I notice in Australia that
Media Watch is the 7th most downloaded podcast so interest in journalism
is high.

79. Some good advice from way back from the late journalist Paul Lyneham,
who was one of Australia's most aggressive journalists. Paul told me once
"the moment I see a man or woman in front of me who understands
the media and its needs, who doesn't behave too meekly and who is
prepared to mix it with me for the sake of the medium, then there is a rise
in the level of my respect for that person and a subsequent difference in
how I threat them during the interview." I think those words of wisdom still
apply.

80. Don't forget blogs if you're monitoring activists. Melbourne-based Priscilla

Brive-Weller, who launched her blog Solidariti.com late 2006 points to
activist activities that could affect a business' bottom line. "People used to
protest and hand out leaflets and now they're going online to do it. All
large organisations should pay attention to what people are saying. They
should be monitoring blogs, taking note and adjusting their strategy." Our
blog is at http://www.kelly.com.au/blog-1/

81. Interesting to see the difference reported between the former NSW
Opposition Leader Peter Debnam and his successor Barry O'Farrell. The
Australian newspaper reported "the contrast could hardly have been
greater. While media conferences with...Debnam often turned into prickly
affairs, ...O'Farrell handled his first media appearances with humour and
aplomb.. ..he's learned to regard the media as part of the political
process rather than as an adversary." Could'nt agree more - and more
people would do better with the media if they thought that way.

82. More advice from the late Paul Lyneham. "Interviewees shouldn’t get
aggressive with the reporter. If the reporter is getting too aggressive with
them, they should become more relaxed than ever and use humour to
 defuse the situation. Muted scorn or that great Aussie laconic humour can
be great weapons to fend off a really aggressive interviewer."

83. Want an interesting quiz for the next reporter you meet? Get him or her to
quote you the journalist's Code of Ethics. I'll bet they can't name all 12
points. See how many they can name. By the way, I could never have
named all of them either when I was a reporter!

84. If you plan on feeding the media any audio from your website, make sure
it’s top quality if you want radio to run it. Modern radio stations use
computer programs to store high quality audio files and they won’t look at
any inferior quality clips. These days they use the phone less and less -
reporters will record those high quality clips on flash recorders and then
send them back to the studio through their laptop computers.

85. Television has a lot more immediacy, thanks to FlyAway Packs. These
lightweight units that can be carried like a rucksack allow a two man crew
(reporter and cameraperson) to quickly set up and beam live from any
location via satellite. Bear this in mind if you operate at a remote site and
want television coverage of an event there.

86. Press, of course, is seeing the biggest change in the convergence media
game. Whereas once press outlets published only newspapers or
magazines, now they also run video and audio from their websites as well
as print. In June 2007, News Corporation advertised for video journalists
for its online site news.com.au – that was a first for Australia, to my
knowledge.

87. Don’t forget SMS as a means of communicating with journalists, especially

if the wording of your message is really important as this method gives
them a written version of your message. Also, reporters often get SMS
messages from their chief of staff (mainly when they’re in court or some
other hearing that precludes a normal phone call) so they’re used to that
form of messaging.

88. A check with HSV 7 TV chief of staff in May 2010 revealed that she got a
lot of SMS alerts to media events, received about 200 emailed media
releases and only about 10 releases in the normal mail – each day.

89. If you’ve wondered how press websites can get their stories up so quickly,
the words are sent from the field (via laptop usually) to specific subeditors
who are using pre-formatted templates to lay out the copy. Don’t forget
that, if the story is important enough, it will run on the website first and
then a different, longer version will be written for the next day’s paper. So,
if you don’t like what you read on their website, you could always contact
the reporter hopefully before he files the longer copy which, incidentally,
 will also end up on the website.

90. If you’re recording an interview with a journalist from radio or television,

use the spoken word not the written word as it’s much friendlier and will
provide a better image of you to those listeners or viewers. I wish
someone had passed on this tip to John Howard when he was our Prime
Minister who, despite all his media savvy, still talked in written words!

91. If you’re not happy with your story in the newspaper and think it was
missing some vital parts it could be worth checking if the sub-editors were
responsible. They get to edit the reporter’s copy often after he/she has left
the building but, if any substantial changes are needed, the sub-editor is
supposed to check with the reporter anyway – especially if it’s a senior
reporter involved.

92. The rise of New Media rolls on. NBC Universal has decided to rename its
television division from NBC Universal Television Studio to Universal
Media Studios. Executive Ben Silverman told TV Week the change was
made to meet the production and distribution needs of a digital world.

93. And, video website YouTube moved to the centre of America’s political
stage in 2007 when users submitted questions in video form to Democrat
Presidential candidates. Alex Spillius, writing from Washington, says
questions submitted by email to recent debates by both parties have often
elicited more interesting answers than those put by professional
presenters. The campaign was dubbed the “YouTube election.”

94. Interesting to see British Prime Minister Tony Blair come out and have a
go at the media before he retired. He said fierce competition for stories
meant that the modern media now hunted in a pack. He went on: “in these
modes it is like a feral beast, just tearing people and reputations to bits,
but no one dares miss out.” If you check out my page for the new media
training e-book ( www.mediatrainingebook.com) you’ll see that I refer to
them (some, that is) as being like sharks and if you actually read the new
e-book, I talk about the level of competition driving them to do things that
some might question. Seems like the retired British PM and myself think
alike on some things!

95. His successor, Gordon Brown, made a fool of himself in the 2010 election
by referring to a granny voter as a silly bitch. He forgot he was still wearing
a radio microphone when he uttered the famous words as he got in his car
to leave her village. The media aired the remarks and Gordon lost the
election – a connection? Maybe.

96. I wish business and community leaders would realise that the media are
the public. The media are not some strange grouping in society - they are
 society. They represent us and should be scrutinising matters on our
behalf. This came home to me again one morning in June 2007 as I read
an article about Mentone Grammar School in Melbourne and how it’s
plunged into debt for the first time despite a massive boost in funding from
our taxpayer dollars. The news story said school board chairman Simon
Appel would not comment on the school’s use of public funds, saying : “it’s
not the place of the media to receive comment on these matters.”

Well, Simon, as I pay my taxes each year I firmly believe it IS the media’s
right to extract comment from you on how you’ve spent my money. The
same story quoted former staff members as saying there was a new car
every eight months for the former Headmaster and new business manager
as well as first class airfares for senior staff and board members!

97. Screen legend Sophia Loren was in Australia in June 2007 and was
ambushed at her media conference by a member of the Chaser comedy
team who left the movie siren angry and confused. Several decades ago
we had another TV ambusher, Norman Gunston, who used to turn up at
international media conferences and embarrass people by asking inane
questions. If you, or somebody you’re media minding, is famous, be aware
that this could happen to you. What do you do? Just grin and bear it to a
point. If you think it’s gone on too far, put an end to it by asking someone
else for a “real” question, thereby taking the focus off the comedian.

98. If a TV or newspaper video camera person asks you to walk for them so
they can get footage for the reporter voiceover, PLEASE try and make it
look natural. So many TV news bulletins show business people, lawyers
and other leaders looking ridiculous as they walk in funny self-conscious
ways. How to do it? Ignore the camera and the cameraman and think
about something else – that way you’ll look more natural.

99. USA news habits in March 2010. 61% consume news online, 54% get it
on radio, 50% watch TV news, 92% get news from multiple platforms,
75% from email or social networking sites, 33% of mobile phone users get
news on phones. It’s highly likely Australian habits are similar.

100. When explaining complex information, such as medical

breakthroughs or financial data, it often pays to use simplified analogies
so more people can understand your point of view, argument or issue. A
great example occurred in 2009 when Professor Elizabeth Blackburn
became Australia's first female Nobel Prize winner for her work on
telomeres, caps that protect chromosomes in cells, and telomerase, an
enzyme that does the protecting.

In explaining her work to journalists, the Nobel Prize winner likened the
elongated shapes of chromosomes to shoelaces; "telomeres on
chromosomes are like the caps on the end of laces that stop them from
fraying; telomerase is the enzyme that ensures this job is carried out."
Instant recognition.
 FIVE KEY ARTICLES TO HELP YOU HANDLE THE MEDIA

How To Handle A Tough Media Interview

Henry Kissinger, when Secretary of State in the USA in the 1970s used to stride into
media conferences and declare: “Anyone here got any questions to go with my
answers?” Now, that’s the attitude you need when dealing with tough media
interviews or media conferences. Too many people go into these encounters
worrying about what the journalist might ask them instead of worrying more about
what information they can impart to put some sort of balance into the interview
equation.

You see, in any issue based interview, the journalist is going to come at you with
negative questioning and, if you do nothing to counter that, the whole interview will
end up as a negative quagmire from which it will be almost impossible for you to
escape with any dignity intact.

After several decades of television news and current affairs experience and an equal
amount of time media training I can honestly say that the rules for handling tough
media interviews haven’t changed at all and I can’t see that they ever will. You have
to stand up for yourself and not let the journalist browbeat you; you have to make
sure you get some of your “equalising” positive points across; you have to do it in an
as entertaining way as possible within the confines of the issue and you certainly
have to do your preparation which includes filtering what information you should be
imparting as well as working out your main two-to-three points you want to get
across in the interview. Other points, that apply to all media interviews, are to keep
your language simple but powerful, be concise and never forget the audience you’re
talking to through that journalist – who they are and where they are?

Also remember to avoid using that awful phrase, 'no comment'. At the very least,
give the media the reason why you can't comment as this provides the journalist
with something useful for his/her audience. It also gives a better image of you as you
don't appear arrogant or as if you're trying to hide something.
Don't mimic the politicians and ignore the question. This is why their credibility is
always so low. Be seen to answer the difficult question but stay general. Then, try to
counter with some positive aspect and go very specific. Paint a word picture for your
audience.

Use a smile, chuckle or laugh to counter any ridiculous accusations. Use the same
technique if you try to put down the journalist. This latter technique usually fails if
attempted in a serious manner.

Doorstop interviews can be a nightmare. Try to avoid them until you are more
experienced. Remember that the journalists in a doorstop are playing to opposition
news directors as well as to their audience. Many a career change has taken place as
a result of some vicious questioning at a doorstop interview. If you can’t avoid the
doorstop, make an excuse to check the latest details to get back inside and do a
mini-preparation, say 3 minutes, and then go back into the fray but be in absolute
control.

Don’t forget - Use a media interview to counter any misinformation that may be
already out there.

Finally, always remember that it’s YOUR interview as well as the journalist’s.

How to prepare for a media interview

Most people get terrified if the media want to interview them for a news, current
affairs or magazine program. These can be on television or radio, or be in print or on
the internet. However, it’s the television or radio interview that get’s the blood
curdling in most executives that I’ve met in media training workshops.

There’s a reason for this – the television interview is the hardest to handle. Any
sweat on your brow, even it’s caused by a harsh light shining on you, can be
misinterpreted by the audience as though you’re hiding something. They don’t see
the light; all they see is the sweat. A bob of the Adam’s apple, a slight lick of the lips,
nervous glances away from the interviewer, a shaking hand or leg, a stumbling
response – all these are negatives that can quickly have the audience totally against
you and what you stand for. The solution, which comes out of proper media training,
is preparation.

When a journalist calls you for an interview, don’t fall for the trap of launching
straight into the exchange there and then. Use a white lie if you have to but put off
the journalist till you’ve had a chance to properly prepare. If you start answering
questions on the phone without this preparation you might find that when the
journalist arrives to record the real interview, your responses, after preparation,
might be different and then you have a whole new ball game called contradiction –
the new news story.

So, what does this vital preparation involve? For a start, check what you should say
or shouldn’t say. This is the filtering that’s so important if you’re going to protect
your career. You should be using some pithy catch-phrases or analogies and these
take time to prepare. The main part of preparation though is to work out the two to
three main messages that you want to get across in the media interview and then
hone them so you have them razor sharp in your mind. Don’t overload with a lot of
messages. You’ll be more successful if you repeat your main three messages several
times rather than get nine different messages once into the interview. You see, in a
pre-recorded interview which will be most television ones you might do, the
reporter will dip into one answer for news, or several for a current affairs program,
so if you repeat your main messages the chances for your grab to be used actually
increase.

Other items to check off during preparation are grooming, use of props or backup
video/stills to illustrate your story, researching little examples to enhance your main
points and doing a Google search on the topic to see what the journalist might be
discovering through that channel. Take the wider view rather than a narrow view so
you’re prepared if the journalist throws an industry wide comment at you. Or
indeed, that might be a region-wide, state-wide, national or international comment
gleaned from his/her Google research.

A final tip for media interview preparation – have someone in your organisation put
you through a mock interview or two before the real one is recorded. We do this for
clients and it works a treat in getting them up to speed before the big event.

Helping the journalist can pay off

People going into a media encounter invariably think that it’s the journalist’s
interview and that they are powerless to do anything to help themselves. They place
themselves at the journalist’s mercy and, often, come out of the encounter second
best because of that misplaced trust. Standing up for yourself is mandatory in any
media interview but it also pays to try and help the journalist before, during and
after that interview.

The actual interview is only part of the encounter. It really started when you or your
PR person received the phone call from the media outlet asking for information
and/or an interview (Or when you or your PR person made the phone call in a pro-
active way rather than reactive manner). You must never launch straight into
dialogue with the journalist before you prepare so you can tell him or her a white lie
(you’ve caught me in a meeting, what is your direct phone number and I’ll call you
back in 10 minutes) and also use the excuse of checking the latest details to bide
time for that preparation. This is helping you, rather than the journalist but you can
tell them that you’d hate to mislead them with information that wasn’t up to date
and that will make them think that you’re helping them.

If you’re putting out a media release about, say, a media conference at an accident
site, let the media know the directions to get there, if a helicopter landing site is
nearby or if there are any restrictions on the media presence and why. As a former
chief of staff at four TV stations, I can tell you that this information will be
appreciated by the COS who will be organising the journalist/crew to get to you.

Younger journalists particularly will appreciate any information you give them. Their
inexperience will mean they will have trouble filtering a lot of information so you
can do that for them. I always advise preparing a single piece of paper with the
heading Main Points and a list of four or five dot points on the main points as you
see them. This is not a media release, which is often seen as a whitewash by
journalists, but a simple sheet of paper with just dot points on it – it can even be
handwritten for that extra touch of simplicity. Any journalist, young or not, who has
not had the chance to prepare for the interview (they could have been diverted
from another story by their chief of staff) will appreciate that gesture.

How else can you help the journalist? If the subject matter is complex, ask them if
they would like a simple explanation prior to the interview. This also gives you the
opportunity to put your spin on the material (perhaps more even than the
journalist’s) before the microphones are switched on.

Do you have any charts, diagrams, models, video or stills that might help the
journalist tell the story better. If so, use them. Let the journalist know as soon as
possible because it may alter the way he/she will construct the story.

Finally, think about using a Video News Release for TV exposure. Today’s news crews
and daily current affairs journalists do not have the luxury of time to capture the
better shots. You and your tame crew can do just that to help the media out and at
the same time, place control of the shoot firmly in your quarters so you know what
images will and will not go to air.

Please, drop the jargon, going forward

Don’t you just love that phrase, “going forward”? Really, what other way can we go.
If we could go backwards and forwards then it might make sense but, as we well
know, you can only go forward in time so why use such a superfluous phrase. I’ll tell
you why some people use it – because they think it makes them sound more
important if they are seen to be using a new buzz phrase. But, if you want journalists
to use that part of your interview, drop all jargon, business speak, acronyms or other
stuffy language. Journalists, and the mass public they represent, hate that stuff with
a passion.

In my country, our new leader cut short his media honeymoon period by embarking
on a world tour and writing his own speeches that were laced with clichés, jargon
and acronyms. In April 2008, Prime Minister Kevin Rudd told the Brookings Institute
in Washington that: “The idea of a harmonious world depends on China being a
participant in the world order and, along with others, acting in accordance with the
rules of that order. Otherwise, harmony is impossible to achieve. Therefore, there is
on the face of it a natural complementarity between the two philosophical
approaches. And a complementarity that could be developed further in the direction
of some form of conceptual synthesis.”
What? This piece dismally fails what I call my town or city square rule. Walk into any
town square, stop 10 people at random and ask them what that passage meant. If
you get one person to explain it, you would be very lucky indeed. The point is that
unless seven or eight of those people can understand your words, don’t use them.
Replace them with simpler words that will have more power and the ability to
increase the reach of your message to many more people. Why limit that reach by
using words that the majority of listeners, readers or viewers can’t understand? Our
Prime Minister came home from his 18 day world our to headlines like: When it
comes to plain speaking, the Prime Minister may be beyond help, What was that,
PM? And Rudd says he’s no robot yet he talks like one. Not good.

Mind you, Americans can be just as silly with their use of the language. The
Agriculture Department, which has consistently used the word ‘hunger’ to describe
those who can least afford to put food on the table, decided to use the phrase “very
low food security” as a description for the 11 million people who go hungry at
times!

Outcome is another of those stuffy words that has become commonplace these
days. Whatever happened to the word result which sounds a lot simpler to me? I’ve
actually media trained people who have later told me they went back to their jobs
eager to use less stuffy language when presenting to colleagues and were thrilled at
how much better they communicated and how much better it was received.

This stuff works – with both media interviews and with other communications as
well. After all, when you talk to a journalist you’re really talking to the audience
behind that journalist and there’s little difference between that and talking to
people in a social situation. If you think about it, the people at next week’s dinner
party, BBQ or other social event will be asking you similar questions to the ones the
journalist asks you in a media interview and we tend to use simple language socially
so why change it for a media interview. Mind you, if the journalist is not asking you
those sorts of questions, he or she is not doing their job properly.

Saying ‘sorry’ can help

People still don’t get it, do they? The media are the people and, guess what? The
media, just like normal people, like it that if organisations get it wrong they admit
that, apologise, set out what they are doing to make sure such a mistake doesn’t
happen again, and get on with life. Do you see many organisations working that
way? Nope, I certainly don’t yet, if adopted, this technique works extremely well.

In my country, Australia, we had a gigantic example of this in February 2008 when

then new Rudd government formally apologised to our aborigines for the way
whites had treated them in the past. The words were simple, yet powerful - “For the
pain, suffering and hurt of these stolen generations, their descendants, we say sorry. To the mothers and the
fathers, the brothers and the sisters, for the breaking up of families, we say sorry. And for the indignity and
degradation thus inflicted on a proud people, we say sorry.”

While words alone will not be enough to fix the ongoing plight of our aborigines, this
gesture had an enormously positive impact on the Australian psyche, both white and
black while at the same time highlighting the meanness of the previous
administration in not offering that apology. Why didn’t they? For the same reason
that most organisations still refuse to apologise when they get things wrong – the
lawyers have moved in and convinced them that they’ll suffer financial
consequences if they say ‘sorry’. What a load of piffle that often is. Even our John
Howard government had received expert advice that apologising to our aborigines
would not mean admitting financial liability for the current generation of whites –
yet he still choose to refuse them that solace. No wonder he lost government, and
his seat in Parliament.

In December 2007 another example came out of the USA when the CEO of the
Facebook social network site, Mark Zuckerberg, apologised for breaching user
privacy in the pursuit of profits. Basically, his Beacon system alerted users’ friends to
what they were buying on other sites like eBay. After a litany of bad press, initial
silence from Zuckerberg and his PR team and Coca Cola cancelling its ads,
Zuckerberg said: “We simply did a bad job with this release and I apologise for it.”

Earlier that year Ribena had to apologise to Australian and New Zealand customers
for selling childrens’ drinks with less than the advertised level of Vitamin C. The
Australian Managing Director John Sayers said: “We have to say sorry. We’ve messed
up. We made mistakes.” The company launched a special TV campaign in both
countries and, again, said sorry for what had happened. Since then, I’ve seen no
negative publicity about this incident or indeed about Ribena or parent company
GlaxoSmithKline.

It seems that, once again, saying sorry can indeed help.

If you like these tips, you’ll just love the full ebook which has many more examples in
video, audio, scanned images, photos and weblinks. You can purchase the full ebook
at http://www.kelly.com.au/media-training/media-training-ebook/

You can view more media training tips at our blog – http://www.kelly.com.au/blog-
1/

If you would like a quote for us to media train you in one of our very popular
workshops, please email the author, Graham Kelly, at graham@kelly.com.au