- Pick up the phone: My phone rang. I didn’t recognize the number and considered ignoring it. Was another financial expert calling to persuade me to allow him to manage my money after talking to him for only three minutes? I picked up the phone. A reporter was calling. He wanted to talk to people who were inspired to start their own businesses by the economy.
- Make time: The journalist called as I was walking out the door. I could have explained I was busy. I didn’t. Cell phones have a cool feature: They allow you to continue calls without a wire staying connected to the wall. Cell phones have speakerphones. You can drive somewhere, with caution, while continuing a conversation. My phone’s battery was running low. I could have told the journalist to call back. I didn’t. I gave him a new number to call. His battery was low, too, and he needed to call back in about 20 minutes. When I called people for interviews when I reported on TV, individuals and big companies gave me countless excuses on why they couldn’t talk to me. (My favorite excuse was how bringing a camera in their store would disrupt customers.) Make yourself available. If people told me they didn’t have time to talk to me for a news story, I moved on to the next business to interview. I was on a deadline. I didn’t have time to wait and make myself convenient for someone’s schedule. If you want media attention, re-arrange your schedule. Do some quick thinking. Don’t miss an opportunity.
- Leave the shampoo in your hair: When the reporter called back later, I was in the shower, my hair full of shampoo. I turned off the water, left the shampoo in my hair and wiped the suds away from my forehead so they didn’t drip into my eyes or onto the cell phone while I tried to put together coherent sentences. I didn’t tell the reporter to call back. He was on a deadline.
- Be open: I didn’t fully enjoy my last two years as a TV reporter. The environment and the job were no longer for me. I didn’t sugarcoat this. Anyone can draw a pretty picture. PR pros and CEOs shoveled a lot of BS my way when I asked questions. Be transparent on why you made the decisions you made. Being honest makes you real. Being real makes you more interesting.
- Be personable: Some people are very guarded when talking to bloggers or journalists. They sound more like robots than humans. Be personable. I talked to this journalist about his family. We discussed issues important to us. We talked about journalism. I learned he once lived in the same city as Loren. I found out he once lived near where I grew up. Again, be real.
- Don’t ignore small media: The journalist may have interviewed me for a story so small, readers may need a magnifying glass. I don’t care. When I was a TV journalist, I sometimes covered great stories I found in smaller publications. You may see a story yourself the first time on the network news or written by the Associated Press, but sometimes those reports were first covered by journalists in smaller markets. And small blogs, publications or media outlets all have loyal readers, viewers and listeners. You’re not too big for small media … even if your hair is full of shampoo.
Comments
Well done, Keith. And Loren.
Point 5 and 6 sort of hint at what I encounter more and more. With all the cutbacks, downsizing and layoffs in media, rural and urban reporters have less time to cover more topics. Gone are the days of the ‘beat reporter’ who has time to become an expert in his or her topic.
Our job is to help reporters become the informational equivalent of a famous short-order cook. We need to prepare them in advance so they can quickly deliver subject matter expertise, resulting in the delivery of accurate information to their readers, viewers or listeners. Not surprisingly, I spend more time helping newly assigned reporters or assisting rural media outlets in preparing their material. There is no critique here — they have to do so much more with so much less.
I’ve been asked questions that I can’t answer but I’ve yet to be asked questions that don’t deserve some sort of answer — even if it is ‘I don’t know, but let me find out for you.’ It’s time well spent.