SAMPLE OPENING PAGES
of
Jas
Lonnquist's
"Television Appearance and Media Strategies
for Superintendents
and Principals"
TABLE OF CONTENTS
1. Media Savvy
The Media and You
Developing Media Savvy
2. Devising a Media
Plan
Legal Issues
Facility Control
Information Control
3. In Times of Crisis: Eight Vital Media Strategies
The Eight Strategies
Sample Press Briefing
4. Providing an
Interview That Won't Get Lost in the Edit
The Use of Interviews in Broadcast News
The Ideal Sound Bite
Working With the Camera
5. How to Project
the Right Image on Camera
Color and Style of Clothing
Hair and Make-up
Body Language
6.
Taping in a Television Studio
Preparation
Ten Common Mistakes and How to Avoid Them
7. How
to Find and Maintain Media Contacts
Finding Contacts
How to Write a Press Release
8.
Strategies to Create a
Ten Strategies
Media Awareness
9. Forms
and Worksheets
Press Briefing Worksheet
Media Sign-In Form
Release Form
Sample Release Letter for
1 MEDIA SAVVY
The
Media and You
Media saturates our lives. Today, more than
ever, we're bombarded with news, information, entertainment, advice, and
advertising.
On the up side, this proliferation of media
gives us instant access to the news and information we need now. And we are not
just consumers of media, we're creators. When we need to inform, promote,
explain, defend, or lobby, the media helps us share our message with the
public. For that reason, the media is a vital and valuable ally for school
superintendents and principals.
On the down side, media proliferation
creates a relentless intruder in our lives, a never-ending buzz of information.
But, again, we're not just consumers of media. In our darkest moments of vulnerability
or crisis, the media can become a dreaded voyeur that is seemingly inescapable.
In the 90 days following the tragedy at Columbine, more than 500 related news
stories aired on the three
To achieve a high level of leadership as a
school superintendent or principal, you are undoubtedly a dedicated,
intelligent, and well-informed individual who serves your school to the best of
your abilities in good times and bad. Developing media savvy ensures that that
is precisely the image you convey to the public.
Developing
Media Savvy
Media savvy requires thorough planning,
active preparation, and the ability to remain keenly aware of the message,
whether seeking publicity or unwillingly caught in the camera's lens. For
superintendents and principals, media savvy will encompass many things:
Confronting
Issues: If you haven't already,
there's a good chance you'll face the press on political or controversial
issues in the future. People care
deeply about schools. Schools shape our children. They survive from our tax
dollars and tuition. They serve as gathering places. Schools are a reflection
of the entire community. What a community cares about, the press must cover.
Media savvy helps you work with the press in a positive way.
Times of Crisis: Since the tragedy at Columbine, schools have gone to
great lengths to create crisis plans. A smooth media plan in a time of crisis
is also a must. A poor media plan (or worse, no media plan) will emphasize a
school's lack of preparation and increase public scrutiny during difficult
times. Media savvy in times of crisis will reduce tension, build a platform of
community pride, and increase cooperation.
Message Management: Media savvy helps you manage the message your school
presents. In times of controversy or breaking news, the press is hungry for new
information. The facts and information should come from you, not a by-stander,
parent, disgruntled employee, or student. Your proactive involvement makes it
more likely that the information reported is actual information, not rumor,
conjecture, or ax-grinding.
Delivering Facts: Parents, voters, and the community (via the media)
want the facts: who, what, when, where, how, and—the one we can't always answer—why.
Media savvy means organizing a media kit and having accurate facts ready and
available when needed.
Seeking
Support: The media can be your ally
in garnering attention, support, and even funding. The press is probably covering your sports programs,
but what about your achievement in the state spelling bee or your participation
in community clean up day? Are people aware that your fundraiser allowed you to
buy five new computers for the school library? Media savvy means never missing
an opportunity to create a positive image.
Understanding the Media: Understanding the media will help you create a
relationship of positive symbiosis, not adversarial confrontation. The press
has a duty to the public to report news, a duty that is soundly supported by
the First Amendment. Members of the media also feel a responsibility to the
publisher or network for accurate reporting and, ideally, good ratings. The
press will be aggressive in pursuing these goals. But media savvy means looking
beyond the microphones, cameras, and notebooks to the people the media serves. These people—parents,
voters, and neighbors—have
a desire and a right to know the truth. Keep them in mind at all times.
2 DEVISING A MEDIA
PLAN
These are the first 2 1/2pages of the report.
For more, see a summary of
its contents plus more information about other reports.
Want to look at the Introduction
or Chapter
1 of
What Every Superintendent and Principal Needs to Know?
Then if you want to order the books or a
report...
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