Using the media London campaigners session - Maria Castellina, Media Manager

Session summary Introductions Why use the media? What are news hooks? Breakout activity: how to make your event media friendly London specifics Telling the press your story How to write the perfect press release Breakout activity: press release writing Wrap up

Why use the media? Getting people to care about the environment – reaching the media isn’t about reaching journalists Using the local press is a good way to influence local politicians – they will all read their local paper/watch their local news It’s a good way to reach out to people who might not be familiar with Friends of the Earth or our campaign

News hooks Something new Facts and stats Milestones/anniversaries There are certain hooks that are always more likely to get the media interested in what you do. For example: Something new Facts and stats Milestones/anniversaries Celebrity An interesting picture Local interest Human interest Humour Shock/breaking news Conflict/debate Something that’s quirky/different

Using news hooks Can you find facts and statistics to show how your issue is impacting people locally? Can you create an interesting visual or stunt that would make an interesting picture and grab the newspapers attention? Do you have an individual who can talk about how the issue has impacted on them, or their family, to put a human face to the problem? Do you have a local celebrity who could attend your event? Will your local MP or councillor come and have their picture taken at your event? An event which has one or two of these thing increases the chances of getting the local press along, and makes it easier to write your press release.

Breakout activity one: creating a media friendly event Your local Friends of the Earth group had been planning to run a stall at the local market talking about bees/air pollution/recycling - how can you turn your stall into a media worthy event? What news hooks can you use? How can you make it visual? What would the photograph be? You have 15 minutes to brain storm some ideas – you can be as creative as you like!

Press in London Regional press in London is almost national – can make it harder to get coverage But local papers/radio still key – delivered straight to people’s homes There is more of it in London than anywhere else – look up your local contacts

Tell the press So, you’ve decided on your event. Now to tell the journalists about it Journalists get emailed hundreds of press releases every day, they will scan through their email subject lines and only bother reading the ones that look the most interesting Your two priorities are to make yours simple and exciting

Perfect press releases Length: Keep press releases short – preferably no longer that one side of A4 Keep it simple: Avoid technical jargon or complicated language. The press release should be able to be understood by someone who knows nothing about the subject. Headline: Your top message should form your headline. Keep it short and catchy but give a clear idea of the story. Opening paragraph: Expand the headline to make your first paragraph. It should answer the basic questions – Who, What, Where, When, Why, and How Next paragraph: This should expand on the first, bringing in some context and one or two sentences of relevant background information Quote: The quote is usually the only part of your press release that will appear directly in the paper. Try and write as if a real person was speaking – reading your quote out loud will help with this. Keep sentences short and punchy. If they only print one sentence about your campaign or event, what should it say?

Perfect press releases Also include: A date of release at the top, usually ‘immediate release’ on the day you send it out. Embargoes should be imposed only when strictly necessary. A contact name, email and phone number of someone who knows about the story, who will be available to answer journalist’s queries and organise or conduct interviews. Photo call: Describe what a journalist will be able to photograph, the more exciting the picture the more likely they will send along a photographer, and let them know exactly where and how to find you. Notes to the editor – any additional information should go in notes at the end. These should be used sparingly and only when the detail is essential.

Perfect press releases Sending it out: Email your release to the journalist – use the headline as the subject line Follow up: Once you have emailed your press release, if you have time follow it up with a phone call to the journalist. Tell them a little bit about the story, ask them if they’ve seen the release, and then see if they are interested in covering it or sending a photographer. Be friendly and don’t take up too much of their time. Get a good photo: If they sound interested but can’t send out a photographer, follow-up with them after the event and send images – a good photo can make the difference between getting coverage and not, so spend time at your event getting your pictures right

Break out activity 2: press releases (20min) A press release has been written but it’s been cut up into pieces, can you put it together again in the right order? Top tip: think about whether you need to include everything The headline is missing – can you write a new one? This activity is about how to order a press release, what info do you need to keep in, and what can you leave out. Try to only keep in the most exciting/important information!

Learning from one another Do any of you have an examples you’d like to share of what has worked well in your area? Any times when it hasn’t worked so well? Any other questions?