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Dealing with the Media:The Good, The Bad, and The Ugly
September 15, 2011
Pop Quiz
The media is an Airport Manager’s?
– A) Best Friend
– B) Occupational Hazard
– C) Worst Nightmare
– D) All of the Above
– E) None of the Above
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Pop Quiz
The media is an Airport Manager’s?
– A) Best Friend
– B) Occupational Hazard
– C) Worst Nightmare
– D) All of the Above
– E) None of the Above
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Good, Bad or Ugly
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Confessions of an Airport PIO What does a Public Information Officer Do?
The Press – 1981 vs. The Media – 2011
The “Rule of Three”
Crisis Communications
The Three “Cs” of Crisis Communications
“Ignore the man behind the curtain”
Being Prepared
Developing and Maintaining Good Media Relations
The Three Questions Every Reporter Will Ask
When They Get It Wrong
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What Does a Public Information Officer Do?
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Words to Remember
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“Never let the facts get in the way of a good story.”
- Mark Twain
The Press - 1981 Three major networks (ABC, CBS, NBC)
Most major cities have two daily newspaper (AM/PM)
Television news uses 16mm film for coverage
Telefacsimile machines introduced in the workplace
PCs are novelties (Apple II, Commodore 64, TRS-80)
Cell phones are a concept
Most people have a roof-mounted antenna or rabbit ears to receive TV
Television broadcast day usually ended at 1:00 a.m. (National Anthem and “High Flight”) and rarely started before 7:00 a.m.
Ted Turner purchase independent Atlanta TV station channel 17 and renames it WTBS
FCC maintains 7 – 7 – 7 rule of media ownership
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The Media - 2011 Broadcast Networks (ABC, CBS, NBC, PBS)
Cable Networks (CNN, CNBC, MSNBC, Fox News, etc)
Most major cities have only ONE daily newspaper.
Cable or satellite TV common
Television news uses digital tape/cards for recording and editing.
Smart Phones
Skype
24/7 news cycle and broadcasts
7 – 7 – 7 rule of media ownership no longer exists
Social media (Facebook, Twitter, GooglePlus, etc)
YouTube
Blogs
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The “Rule of Three”
Information is easily retained in groups of threes.
Three topics – max
Three points of emphasis per topic – max
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Crisis Communications “Houston, uh, we have a problem.”
– ALWAYS acknowledge something is wrong (if it is indeed wrong)
– Find out as soon as possible from the most reliable source
What happened and when? (Develop a timeline)
What impact is it having on your operation?
What are the potential impacts long-term?
When will your operation return to “normal”?
– Secondary concerns
Why did it happen?
Who is responsible?
How do you prevent this from happening again?
Remember, you should be more concerned about fixing the problem than fixing the blame.
Actively use the Incident Command System (ICS)11
Good, Bad or Ugly?
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The Three “Cs” of Crisis Communications Compassion
– “Our first concern is for the victims”
– “We’re deeply concerned about this incident’s impact on our community”
– “We are doing whatever we can to assist our customers”
Control
– “The fire is out”
– “There has been no significant impact on operations”
– “There is no threat to the security of the airport”
Commitment
– “We are working to find out why this occurred.”
– “We are committed to working with the NTSB”
– “Our number one priority has been, and always will be the safety and security of our passengers.”
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“Ignore the man behind the curtain”
Circling the Wagons
Too many people speaking to the Media
Not keep your own people informed
Jargon and technical talk
Denying there’s a problem
Releasing unverified information
Not monitoring the media
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Good, Bad or Ugly?
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Being Prepared
The Good
– Three great things about your Airport
– Draft a short explanation of each and why they are important to your Airport
– Keep it handy, review often and update as necessary
The Bad
– Three things about your Airport that could go wrong and be a problem
– Draft a short explanation of why each issue is important despite the risk
– Keep it handy, review often and update as necessary
The Ugly
– Three things at your Airport you really don’t want to talk to anyone about.
– Draft a short explanation as to why this issue is critical to your Airport
– Keep it handy, review often, and update as necessary
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Developing & Maintaining Good Media Relations
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Good media relations are good personal relations
– Invite media to visit when you don’t have a story
– Take the time, one-on-one, if possible, for a complete Airport tour (terminal, ramp, runways, tenants, etc)
When hosting a media event,
– Notify the media at 48-72 hours in advance
– Provide in advisory the “Who, What, Where, When and Why”
– Make the event as “visual” as possible
– Provide printed information to hand out.
– Do their homework for them
The Three Questions Every Reporter Will Ask
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The question you don’t know or don’t have an answer to.
– It’s OK to say “I don’t have that information” or “I can’t discuss that at this time”
– If you say you’ll call them back with an answer you MUST call them back with an answer.
A question that will ask you to speculate
– Never speculate, theorize, or hypothesize.
– Remember, your role model is Sgt. Joe Friday (“Just the facts, ma’am.”
A question that will want your opinion
– Private citizens have opinions; government spokespeople do not.
The Three (Other) Questions Every Reporter Will Ask
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“Simple” yes or no questions
– Aviation industry is not a simple business
– “It’s not really as simple as ‘yes or no’, there are many variables we’re dealing with.”
A “Third Party” question
– You do not work for nor represent the Third Party
– “I’m sorry, I can’t comment on that since …”
Same questions rephrased
– Make sure you listen completely to every question before you respond
– Once you realize it’s the same question, “As I said before…”
When They Get it Wrong
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How “wrong” is it?
– Let trivial errors go.
– Major errors must be addressed
Contact the reporter
– Explain what they got wrong
– Ask for a correction
Newspapers will usually print corrections
More difficult for broadcast media
Contact the Editor
If a correction is promised, make sure it is received
Op-Ed piece
Words to Remember
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“Never get in a ‘war of words’ with a man who buys ink by the barrel.”
- William Randolph Hearst
Things Beyond Your Control
Live Coverage
Helicopter Coverage
Citizen “Reporters”
Experts (“Talking Heads”)
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Review
The Media IS Your Friend
Cultivate Relationships
Be Prepared
Relax and Enjoy Yourself!
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Thank You!
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