Tips for working with Tier 1 media

(About a 10 minute read)

I don’t fully remember my very first media engagement, but I do know at the time I was a young lieutenant who was just excited to get out and tell the Air Force’s story to one of Britain’s fine local East Anglia media outlets.

A lot has changed for me from that first year, as a base-level public affairs officer (PAO), and I’ve had the pleasure of working with various organizations typically termed as “Tier 1 media outlets,” to include the BBC, several CBS programs, WSJ, Radio Lab, and other notable name drops. Long story short, I’ve had a few years to develop my skill craft, remain transparent as a military spokesperson, and convey our Air Force story to a global audience. As such, I hope I can provide some advice and lessons learned to others in military PA and the PR world writ large, who either are or one day strive to work with this level of journalism.

First off, I would offer that you’re probably going to experience two basic types of Tier 1 engagements: planned and emergent. Though this might seem like a basic, common sense break down, they are different enough from each other and require unique approaches, thus why I mention it.

I actually won’t go too much into emergent Tier 1 engagements, because for all intents and purposes they’re handled as you would just about any other emergent engagement. This said, you can except they will throw the weight of their affiliation on you and your organization to get the answers they want. You may be tempted to get a quick answer to them, but it’s even more important, given the large audience of these outlets, to have all your ducks in a row before responding. Just remember, don’t paralyze your communication strategy.

Regarding planned engagements. To be frank, it’s easy to over think things with engaging Tier 1 outlets. First and foremost, remember your basics. As a public communicator, you’re there to tell the story of your organization. This means knowing what the story is. Some people like to brag that they can sell anything to the media. I’m quick to think someone batting 1,000 with the media is false for many of the same reason we learn not to trust superlatives. Also, members of the media typically go for what interests them, and not everything will meet that expectation. There’s eventually going to be a story some media hawker will run into that just won’t see more than local coverage.

Develop a Concept

What I would recommend is laying out the show, article or some form of a draft product, which the producer will want to see, before you’ve even begun talking to any of the production staff. Oh, by the way, you’re probably not going to talk directly to the “talent,” or main reporter, right off the bat, so get used to that.

You want to provide a somewhere between 80-90 percent complete concept of the story to them, that way they can go through and tell you what they like or don’t like, they can ask questions and you’ll have the knowledge to answer on behalf of your organization. This may seem very much geared toward televised broadcast, but even when working with print and blog-style media, this will help the reporter or producer lay out a framework for the final product.

I would expect and even push for an over the phone or in-person (if you have the luxury) meeting to talk through everything once you’ve sent the concept to the producer. So much can be lost through email and if it’s important to whoever hired you as a communicator to get this right, it’s important to actually talk to the producer.

At this point, you should know your outlet, and expect that these initial calls will be on background. Here you can get a sense of the story direction from the affiliate’s eyes, and you can start to determine where you’re lacking and what parts of the story are solid from your end. There’s no right number of pre-production discussions, but one to two concept discussions seemed to do the job for me, and I always tried to have subject matter experts in the room with me to provide background information for context. This was especially crucial when dealing with complicated topics like our nation’s nuclear arsenal.

The Art and Skill of Research

Before going much further, you can see that a lot of work goes into a Tier 1 engagement before it actually takes place. None of this would be possible without research.

As soon as I know who the talent is and who the producer is, I’m looking up pieces they’ve worked on in the past, relevant to both the content and the style they’re looking to present on my story. Style is important, because one night someone may be working a hard news piece, and the next they might get called over to do an extended feature. You need to know how they approach each one and what interests them.

This is why I say research is a bit of skill, but also a bit of an art.

You don’t have time to sift through everything relevant to the reporter, their producer, or editor. You should know your information sources, most of them will be web-based, but how do you actually learn what’s important to the reporter? It’s easy enough to typecast reporters as someone interested in human interest pieces in an impoverished country, or just another war correspondent, but there’s an art to actually getting to know the reporter. It takes people skills, and every situation is unique.

However, most will tell you, and if not, their producer will. Why? It goes back to a previous comment; reporters want to cover what interests them and topics that speak to their passion.

I would say you’ll be very hard pressed to find a major media correspondent who doesn’t have passion and an defined focus, which should make relating your story to them easy.

Nuances

Here’s the list most were probably tuning in for – a quick set of “oh, I didn’t know that” lessons from my time in the field.

• Questions: I don’t know how common place it is for you to ask a reporter for questions ahead of an engagement, I know some people and organizations demand it or even take pride in this action. Suffice it to say, expect that doing this with a Tier 1 outlet will somewhat sour the relationship with them. You should be able to develop questions from the pre-production discussions and research. If you find yourself struggling here, I recommend trying something more along the lines of going over your notes with the producer and asking if there are any major points you missed or they would like to emphasize. It’s not some clever way of tricking them into providing a “question list” that likely doesn’t exist yet. You’re ensuring both parties walk away feeling as if no rock was left unturned for the story.
• Access: for a planned engagement, expect that the reporter will want a unique and in-depth experience. This doesn’t mean you need to roll out the proverbial red carpet, but this is the chance to tell an in-depth and complex story about the organization you represent. This means providing background information and following through the “tell” portion with the “show.”
• The Producer: I can’t emphasize enough that your relationship with the producer will set the tone for the overall engagement. This means knowing that their time is valuable, but also not being afraid to bring up important agenda items or discussion points relevant to the piece you’re working on with them. Also, keep in mind, you’re not going to be the only focus they have. Many of the folks I’ve talked to typically have anywhere from five to about a dozen other major projects they’re working. Don’t get upset if they need to rehash points that are important to you. Finally, this should just further foot stomp that getting the concept as developed as possible on your end will make the whole process run smoother.
• The Interview: Set up and the person being interviewed may seem simple enough, but here are some nuances you’ll run into on these types of interviews. Take note of the show’s style if you’re doing an on camera interview, and for any interview, pick a non-threatening location. This is for your person just as much as it is for the reporter. Here are several things I’ve picked up along the way from practical experience, theory and study, and two books on the subject of lying – Liespotting and Human Lie Detection and Body Language 101 (sorry it’s out of print) – which help to guid my set-up of an interview.

1. I try to always keep the reporter and interviewee at angles to each other, not head on.
2. Get barstool or taller chairs, but make sure they don’t swivel and aren’t overly elaborate or distracting (this can be tough in a pinch if you aren’t expecting this request).
3. Don’t put your person behind a desk, it makes it seem as if they have something to hide and allows them to exacerbate nervous twitches.
4. Have enough water for the full day and make food arrangements, though you’re not expected to buy food.
5. Have your interview location free of background noise, unless you’re using it as a scene setter.
6. Expect the major interviews (not on-the-spot) to take about two hours, minimum, but something like 60 Minutes may need three to four hours. Ask the question, and they’ll give you an estimate on what to expect.
7. Prep your person! Just because they think they’re good with the media, this is no time to skip on the practice. Get in there, ask them questions, and get their mind rehearsing how they should respond. If you don’t feel comfortable, get a camera and record them. You should know what your person will look like on camera before the show airs.

There are so many other things I’ve picked up along the way, but really it all revolves around understanding the reporter, the outlet they work for, and where your organization’s position is in relation to what they want. If you have any other questions, you can always send me a message – I love talking about media engagements – and I’d be more than happy to talk through what you agree with or don’t, or would like to know more about.