Monday Morning Media Minute

Foot-in-mouth disease. It can hit anyone who talks to reporters.

Hillary Clinton fell victim to it last week with her now-infamous reference to RFK’s assassination.

The first news reports about Clinton’s comment made it sound like she was saying one reason for her to stay in the race for the Democratic presidential nomination is that Barack Obama might be assassinated. That’s not quite what she said, of course. But the damage had been done.

What do you do if you find yourself in a similar situation? That depends.

If your verbal faux pas will disappear from the media after a single news cycle, you may just want to take your lumps and move on — especially if anything you say will keep the story alive another day.

If the issue’s likely to stay in the news for more than one news cycle — or, if it’s serious enough that you feel an explanation is necessary — then you’ll probably want to do what Clinton did: Clarify what you meant (or acknowledge you made a mistake), apologize if appropriate and then move on.

Your objective: Limit the damage by limiting the amount of time the issue remains in the news.

Last week’s incident is also a good reminder that it’s important to be careful what you say around reporters. The best way to do that is to know what your message is before you talk to reporters and stick to it. Any time you answer a reporter’s question that you haven’t prepared for you run the risk of suffering from foot-in-mouth disease. So, think before speaking.

That’s my two cents’ worth. What’s yours?

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The Monday Morning Media Minute is now available as an eBook. My new eStore features five eBooks based on the Media Minute. To check them out, visit my eStore and buy early and often. The eBooks come as PDF files. You don’t need special eBook software to read them. Want to read and comment on back issues of MMMM? Check out the MMMM blog.

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What this is: An idea you can read in a minute or so and use to make your interactions with the news media more successful. More Monday Morning Media Minutes.

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© 2008 Jerry Brown

Here’s a bandwagon some of you can ride – Indiana Jones.

The new Indiana Jones movie promises to be a big hit. That’ll lead to a round of stories about whether Harrison Ford can still cut it as an action hero at age 65. We’ll be reading about how he’s a little creaky around the edges and/or still a hunk and dozens of variations on those themes.

And then we’ll start seeing stories about senior citizens continuing to succeed at things once reserved for younger people – and stories about people remaining active at jobs, sports and other activities far longer than they used to.

Do you have a story to tell around that trend? If so, get it ready so you can pitch it once the movie hits the theaters and the media starts looking for stories to tell.

Don’t have a story that fits the Indiana Jones hoopla we’re about the experience? Then look for other trends in the news or dates on the calendar you can use as a hook for your story. If you watch for them, you’ll be surprised at how often they come along.

That’s my two cents’ worth. What’s yours?

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The Monday Morning Media Minute is now available as an eBook. My new eStore features five eBooks based on the Media Minute. To check them out, visit my eStore and buy early and often. The eBooks come as PDF files. You don’t need special eBook software to read them. Want to read and comment on back issues of MMMM? Check out the MMMM blog.

© 2008 Jerry Brown

Sometimes the best spin is no spin.

Last week, a judge dismissed criminal charges against a Denver middle school principal accused of failing to report allegations of child abuse quickly enough to police.

The case represents a difference of opinion between Denver Public Schools and Denver police over when school officials should report potential child abuse or neglect.

It started with an allegation two seventh-grade boys at Skinner Middle School touched a girl in class. Principal Nicole Veltze suspended the boys and called their parents, but didn’t notify police. The next day police called Veltze and, ultimately, she was charged with a misdemeanor count of failure to report an allegation of child abuse or neglect at her school.

Denver Public Schools believe Veltze acted properly. Police disagree.

This is no small matter. The agencies involved see their disagreement as important enough for School Superintendent Michael Bennet and Police Chief Gerry Whitman to meet with Denver social services representatives to try to resolve the issue. The charges filed against Veltze gave the courts an opportunity to rule on which agency is right. And the disagreement between the two agencies has gotten a fair amount of media coverage.

In short, both sides have stood up for what they believe is right. What they haven’t done is wage an all-out public relations war against one another. They’re not trying to “spin” the story for the media. And that has served both agencies well.

The two agencies have an honest disagreement. Different people will see the issue differently – some siding with the schools and some siding with the police.

But, by avoiding a public shouting match, the agencies have given themselves room to negotiate. As a result, they’ll almost certainly be able to negotiate a solution that won’t damage the reputation of either agency – even though they’re involved in a very public controversy over a highly emotional issue

It’s a good example to follow if you find yourself or one of your clients in the middle of a public controversy.

That’s my two cents’ worth. What’s yours?

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The Monday Morning Media Minute is now available as an eBook. My new eStore features five eBooks based on the Media Minute. To check them out, visit my eStore and buy early and often. The eBooks come as PDF files. You don’t need special eBook software to read them. Want to read and comment on back issues of MMMM? Check out the MMMM blog.

What you don’t say is important. Because it adds impact to what you do say.

Get out your editing pen and trim the fat from what you’ve written – press releases, speeches, factsheets, newsletters, whatever.

Be ruthless when editing yourself. Start by knowing who your audience is and what your message is. Get rid of anything that doesn’t support your message. If you can say it in fewer words, do it. Replace big words with little ones.

Most of us try to say too many things and use too many words to do it.

Trimming the fat adds impact to your message. I almost always write too many words to begin. Then I start trimming. Sometimes I play editing games, picking an arbitrary number of words to get rid of, for example. If that proves easy, I pick a smaller word count and do it again. Or I find ways to trim a page or more from what I’ve written. If I’m ruthless with my editing, the end product is always better.

I keep editing until the only way to cut more is to get rid of things important to my message. Then it’s time to quit.

That’s my two cents’ worth. What’s yours?

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The Monday Morning Media Minute is now available as an eBook. My new eStore features five eBooks based on the Media Minute. To check them out, visit my eStore and buy early and often. The eBooks come as PDF files. You don’t need special eBook software to read them. Want to read and comment on back issues of MMMM? Check out the MMMM blog.