Reading Summary 5

Sylvia C Kearney Reading Summary 5

REFERENCE: Johnson Avery, E., & Kim, S. (2008). Preparing for Pandemic While Managing Uncertainty: An Analysis of the Construction of Fear and Uncertainty in Press Releases of Major Health Agencies. Conference Papers -- International Communication Association, 1-26.

THEME: Does a Public Information Officer Instill Fear and Anxiety In a Press Release to the Public?

SUMMARY: When SARS (Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome) broke out in 2003 in China, Hong Kong, Vietnam, Singapore and Canada, the WHO (World Health Organization) published a global alert. “ . . . Faced with a potential pandemic “for which there were no identified causal agent, no diagnostic laboratory assays, no defined properties or risk factors for transmission, no infection-control practices of proven efficacy, and no known treatment or preventative measures.” (Lingappa, McDonald, Simone, & Parashar, 2004, p. 1) This information is daunting and to tell the entire world can inflict possible chaos.

1)    First of all, the International Health community did not know very much about this outbreak and the public knew even less. “These types of challenges are similar to those currently posed to PIO’s in the midst of preparing for a possible, . . . pandemic.” (Johnson Avery, E., & Kim, S. (2008).

2)    The public insists and deserves timely, accurate information. Matter of fact, in any event, the very first 24hours are crucial in forming public opinion about a disaster. In a hurricane that will hit landfall, it is of vital importance to evacuate those people that may be in the path of the hurricane.

3)    Speed is also of the very essence. There may be no time to filter the information, there may be no time to regard managerial levels, there may just be no time but to, “ . . . assert message features such as clarity, completeness, volume, accuracy, source ethos, ambiguity, applicability, and consistency are key to reducing uncertainty in receivers of health messages.” (Johnson Avery, E., & Kim, S. (2008). When a person is trying to assess and manage messages as they come in and as they need to be broadcasted by a PIO, human behavior dictates that fear, anxiety etc. is difficult to hide.

4)    Short factual up-dates to the public are better and easier to handle, in case a change in a previous update needs to be explained.

5)    In most cases a website for explanation should also be offered to the public so they can inform themselves about the pandemic. This can also help anxiety or fear, since individuals now feel empowered to inform themselves.

APPLICATION: “PIO’s must communicate their own uncertainties, then, in a way, that restores efficacy even in the face of uncertainty by presenting publics with some course of action or at least demonstrate their own efforts taken to reduce the threat.” (Johnson Avery, E., & Kim, S. (2008). There needs to be a positive relationship between uncertainty and fear.

Additional Readings: Lingappa, McDonald, Simone, & Parashar, 2004, p. 1

8 - Jeffrey Martin - Preparing for Media Interviews

Reference:  Buchanan, Y. M. (2004). Preparing For Media Interviews. Retrieved from Clark Communications: http://www.clarkcommunication.com/PRTips/Preparing_for_Media_Interviews.php

Theme:  The article discusses preparing for media interviews.

Summary:  Preparing for a media interview is the key to getting your message out to the public effectively.  There are several ways that you can prepare.  Preparation allows you to convey only what you want to release, without having to stop for long periods of time to collect your thoughts.  You will also be able to avoid casual conversation, which can lead to quotes that you don’t want published.  Preparation allows you to maintain a professional tone. 

•          Poll:  Try to find out what the reporters want to know in advance.
•          Prepare: develop an anticipatory question and answer sheet.  Have fact sheets on hand.
•          Research:  make sure you know your subject.  Spend time getting to know the strengths and weaknesses. 
•          Verify: confirm the time and place for the interview to avoid either side missing it.
•          Simplify:  Keep your comments targeted and to the point.  Very little of what you actually say will be used.

Application to lesson:  Being prepared for your interview will make things more likely to go the way you want.  The advice in this article will be helpful in preparing your interview assignment.

Application to emergency services: Being prepared will allow you to get through your interview.  You must be prepared so that you do not leave any vital information out.  It will also prevent you from rambling on and saying things that you should not release during casual conversation.

8- Ashley Burningham- Preparing for a Media Interview

 

Reference:

Lima, P. (2012). When the Reporter Comes Calling How to Prepare For Media Interviews. CMA Magazine (1926-4550), 86(1), 34-35.

 

Theme:

Preparing for an interview is crucial and will determine your success.

 

Summary:

·         You never know when a reporter may call. You need to be prepared to answer the questions.

·         Write down key messages, what you want to convey, and how you want to respond to questions.

·         Have 30 second speech prepared to provide background information about agency.

·         Prepare answers for questions you don't want to answer.

·         Don't dodge the question, but answer in a way that makes your agency look good.

·         Make sure you know what you can and cannot talk about. You still need to know how you will respond, even if you can't talk about it.

·         Determine your objectives and key messages and create answers with the two.

·         Make sure to monitor social media so that any rumors are dismissed. Make sure to include accurate information in your debunking.

·         You can't control questions, but you can control how you answer them.

·         Your answer can shape the way a story is reported.

 

Application to Lesson:

This week's lesson talked about preparing for media interviews. If you are in a position to be interviewed, you have to know how to prepare for such interview.

 

Application to Career:

Not every person in law enforcement will deal with media interviews, because this mostly lies on the shoulders of the PIO. However, any person may potentially be asked to interview. It is important that employees are familiar with the procedures for conducting interviews.

Preparing for a News Interview

Joseph Galbraith

Lesson 8 Reading Summary

 

Reference:  

Telg, R. (2012). Preparing for a News Interview. Gainesville: University of Florida.

  Theme: This article gives suggestions for preparing for a news interview.  Developing a strategy beforehand will lead to a successful interview for you and the interviewer.

 Summary:

• Feeling prepared and confident can make a big difference in an interview.

 
•Prepare two or three ideas that will be your main points to get across to the public.

• Develop a list of questions that you think may be asked during the interview.

• Be familiar with the topic subjects and have answers ready.

• Keeping the interview responses simple and short will aid in keeping on subject.

• Stay on topic and summarize your main points to ensure your message was sent.  Explain again and ask interviewer if message was clear.

•Know when to pause and when to stop talking.  Answer the question and stop.

•Think before you speak and do not use fillers.

•Try to turn negative questions into positive responses.

•Do not speak for other organizations for which you do not have knowledge.

•Do not answer hypothetical questions. These questions represent scenarios that have never occurred.

•Working on your voice presentation takes practice.  Use recording devices to analyze yourself answering questions.  Add expressions and variety can keep the audience's attention.

•Appearance is everything and can say a lot about your credibility and professionalism.  You dress conservative.

•Follow the 'Be Attitudes" which are; be prepared, be positive, be honest, be brief, be yourself, be comfortable, be energetic,  and be focused.

 Application to the lesson topic:

This is another great list of tips for giving interviews.  It has many similarities to the reading presented in this module. 

 

Application to emergency services:

As emergency managers we are expected to have good communication skills.  Even though we have PIO's who work with the media on a daily basis, we may be called upon to give an interview.  These tips are a great way to deal with the media in an aggressive manner so that we are not caught off guard and so we can effectively communicate with our customers.

ESMG_4200_Lesson_6 Summary

James Delli Gatti

Serving the Public Interest in a Crisis: Radio and its Unique Role

Reference:  Spence, P., Lachlan, K., McIntyre, J., & Seeger, M. (July 2009). Serving the Public Interest in a Crisis: Radio and its Unique Role. Journal of Radio & Audio Media, P144-159.

 

Theme: Media relations and disaster preparedness

Summary: This Journal article highlights the effectiveness of radio news media and its unique role in serving the public's interests during a disaster. The article goes on to state that in a study of one hundred twenty seven radio stations that many stations don't dedicate much time to being prepared for disaster coverage and rely heavily on the EAS system.

"During times of crisis, radio stations frequently operate in the public interest, disseminating critical information concerning the crisis, as well as information on remedial steps that can be taken by the affected public. Questions remain concerning the level of preparedness across varying stations, as well as self perceptions concerning the role of radio in these instances. A survey of 127 radio stations indicates that many stations do not invest much time in crisis training and preparedness, and instead rely heavily on the EAS system" (Spence, Lachlan, McIntyre, & Seeger, July 2009)4

 

While very few radio stations are ill prepared to deal with a disaster situation this article highlights the role of radio in creating mass panic during the H.G. Wells' The War of the Worlds radio program. the radio is an excellent tool for the use of emergency services personnel to utilize in the event of an emergency due to a large listening demographic and its ability to get your message out to the public that you are trying to inform and protect. 

Application to the lesson topic: The media has the ability to take a story and paint the situation out in very many different shades of grey. The news media can also be a very useful tool in disseminating information regarding disaster preparedness to the public in order to mitigate future catastrophes and your relationship with them can make the difference in getting the message that you want in an accurate, timely, and efficient manner.

Application to emergency services: It is important that you have a good relationship with the news media and that you provide as much information as possible; that is a true representation as to what is actually going on in a disaster situation. Having a good relationship with the media can facilitate good lines of communication and achieve the goals in other areas such as disaster preparedness.

Spence, P., Lachlan, K., McIntyre, J., & Seeger, M. (July 2009). Serving the Public Interest in a Crisis: Radio and its Unique Role. Journal of Radio & Audio Media, P144-159.

8-Successfully Communicating with Key Messages

Andrea Graff

Successfully Communicating with Key Messages

Reference: Summerfield, S., Benninghoven, S. (2006). Successfully communicating with key messages. Western City.

Theme: Creating a key message culture in your city will provide benefits for your organization.

Summary:

• A key message is the thing you want your audience to go away with when they are done listening to your speech or reading your website. Being able to "stay on message" requires discipline and is very different from the multi page documents some may be used to putting out.

• Creating a key message requires you to step back and thing about what you really want your audience to know. You are going to have multiple audiences that you are going to be addressing and you need to arrange your message in different ways to address the different audiences.

• You are going to need to deliver the messages to your audiences in different ways. Make sure you consider the different approaches and which one will fit best with the audience you are addressing.

• If you are met with resistance when implementing key messages showing successful case studies may be helpful. The city council and city manager must be on board for others to accept and implement the new way of doing things.

Application to the lesson topic:
Understanding what a key message is, how to create it, and who it will be delivered to is the first step of implementing them into your agency.

Application to emergency services:
If key messages aren't the current format being used, converting our agencies over will benefit not only us, but the city as well. Getting the most pertinent information to the public should be our main goal.

ESMG_4200_Reading_summary_4

James Delli Gatti

Kelly, Patterson honored for reducing crime

Reference: Mitchell, Y. (23 February 2006). Kelly, Paterson honored for reducing crime: New York Amsterdam.Delaney, New York. Vol. 97 Issue 9, p9-9, 1/3p

Theme: Disaster relief and Leadership

Summary: This news article highlights the work of two men; Raymond, W Kelly and David, A Paterson, for their work that resulted in the reduction of crime within the city. Mr. Kelly was the police commissioner of the state of New York and during his tenure as the Police Commissioner he was able to reduce crime rates within his state. Mr. Paterson was the Senate Minority Leader of the New York State Senate. Together their efforts reduced the open and shameless sale of crack cocaine on the streets of New York. During their award ceremony Paterson stated;

"The future belongs to us as we work to fulfill the dreams of our ancestors. For true freedom of race, economics, gender, and principals is to let no one ever split our ranks. Equality for all is as American as apple pie." (Mitchell, 2006)

These two men receive recognition for all of their effort and success in reducing crime and effecting positive change within the communities that they served.

 

Application to the lesson topic: These two men used their position as well as their circle of influence to effect positive change within the communities that they served. These men took responsibility for the policies and decisions that ultimately led to to the improvement of the safety and security by reducing the sale of crack cocaine within their communities.

Application to emergency services: Through the understanding of the needs of the community that they serve, the development of a plan to achieve these goals, and the follow through to complete these goals these two men were able to make the changes that the community wanted to see and garnered local support through their actions.  

 

Kelly, Paterson honored for reducing crime.   Full Text Available By: Mitchell, Yvonne Delaney. New York Amsterdam News. 2/23/2006, Vol. 97 Issue 9, p9-9. 1/3p.