Work With the Media, Not Against It

    The message on your desk says that a reporter from the local newspaper has called, and wants you to call back. Does that situation unnerve you, as it does many otherwise poised and confident business people? In our controversy-soaked society, where so much of the news seems sensationalized, it is easy to distrust all members of the media.    It can be even worse if you have had negative experiences in the past with a writer who misquoted you, or a radio announcer who got the facts wrong in a story that made your company look bad. The temptation is to crumple up the message and throw it away.    That's an understandable reaction, but instead of shutting down the line of communication between you and the reporter, I suggest that you do just the opposite: open that line widely. Here are three specific ways of improving relations with your local news representatives.• Be proactive. Manage the relationship. Instead of reacting to reporters, make them react to you. Take the initiative and introduce yourself to the person who has the "business beat." Since many newspapers periodically rotate their staff among different kinds of assignments, no reporter can be expected to know everything about every beat. When you see a new face, give the person your card and offer to become a source of information. Invite him or her on a tour of your company. Reporters are like everyone else: they appreciate being helped when they are in a strange territory.

• Be accessible. When the media needs to speak with you, make yourself available, either in person or on the phone. Don't ignore their phone calls, and don't be drag your feet getting them necessary information. They are trying to do their jobs. If you don't talk with them, you increase the chance they will get the story wrong. To help them get it right, communicate clearly and fully. If you give them some technical information, for example, define any specialized language. "Subsidiary ledger" or "market stretching" may be familiar to you, but what do they mean to the typical reporter?• Be honest. Tell them what they need to know; don't deprive them of information they should have access to. Reporters become upset when sources suppress bad news. If you expect them to publicize your organization's accomplishments, it's only fair that you be equally forthcoming about the negative things that happen. You can soften the bad news by putting a positive "spin" on the information, but reporters expect you to be honest with them.

   
By establishing yourself as a friend of the media, you increase the likelihood that newspaper, radio and television coverage of your company will improve. Communicating openly, even cheerfully, with local news representatives will pay dividends in terms of accurate information and professional satisfaction. And you might even enjoy seeing your name in the paper.