2012 Report to the Nation Delegate Council Playbook
A Field Guide to Making the National Report Local
OVERVIEW
Each year, as part of the BSA’s congressional charter, the Boy Scouts of America® is required to present a report to the speaker of the U.S. House of Representatives. This report covers who the BSA is as an organization, the programs and initiatives it supports, and its major accomplishments and contributions over the past year.
This report is a presentation of who we are and what we do as a community—from the organization as a whole down to each individual unit. Thus, we each own a little piece of it.
To bring that important point home, each year a delegation of six to 10 Scouts is selected to travel to Washington, D.C., to deliver the report to our nation’s leaders. The delegation represents all areas of Scouting and every region of the country.
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This year, the delegation includes one of your Scouts—a big honor and one worth talking about. The delegation will be in Washington, D.C., from Feb. 23–28. The group’s agenda rivals that of many heads of state and includes meetings with leaders at the Pentagon, CIA, congressional offices, and the U.S. Supreme Court, among others. A full agenda will be provided for your reference, in the Resources section of this document, when completed in February.
THE OPPORTUNITY
The Report to the Nation presents a significant opportunity for local councils, districts, and even units to tell your story to your communities, media, elected officials, current and potential donors, council board members, schools, and other Scouting advocates. Our accomplishments are a mark of pride for us as an organization and should be communicated to our local peers.
Beyond the content of the report, there is also a significant opportunity for you, as a council sending a delegate, to highlight the Scout, his or her accomplishments, and the upcoming trip.
This playbook will serve as your field guide to making the Report to the Nation local—to promote the good works of the BSA nationally while highlighting to the media, local organizations, board members, and other advocates and friends the many contributions Scouting makes in your communities.
BEFORE THE DELEGATE’S TRIP TO WASHINGTON, D.C.
MAKE THE REPORT YOURS
Customize the Report to the Nation to make it a report to your state, council territory, or individual community. To make it as relevant as possible, this year’s Report to the Nation will have spaces to add information that is specific to your council, districts, or units. For example, relevant information to include would be the total number of Scouts within the council or market, the total number of service hours donated, key numbers related to summer camps, and other important statistics. You can even give examples of significant projects undertaken by Scouts in your communities.
To make this step as easy and seamless as possible, we have included prompts within the national report (which are highlighted for quick and easy reference) for local councils and units to complete. This customization should be completed before the report is shared externally. You can also prepare other media kit materials in advance of your delegate’s departure. More information on those materials can be found below.
PREPARE MATERIALS TO SHARE WITH THE MEDIA
At the end of this playbook, you will find various documents that can be personalized to prepare media materials, including a media advisory and press kit housing a news release, localized version of Report to the Nation, and fact sheets. These documents will serve to provide the media with relevant information that will aid in forming a solid story. The media advisory and press kit can be shared with the reporter in electronic format or hard copy. If materials are shared via hard copy, it is recommended that all press kit materials be housed together in a BSA-branded folder.
Materials to include in the press kit, many of which can be found in the Resources section of this playbook, are:
· Localized version of the Report to the Nation. Remember to personalize this report before sharing externally. Making sure the report is local will be important to reporters. Please note that the template version of the Report to the Nation will be sent separately from this document.
· Local news release. Be sure to personalize the news release with local data and quotes and add contact information so that reporters can follow up with questions and interview requests.
· Report to the Nation fact sheet. This piece, shorter in form than the full report, provides a snapshot of the Report to the Nation. This can and should be localized before including it in the press kit.
· Graphic assets. This includes an animated video and information graph that illustrate this year’s report.
CONDUCT YOUR REPORT TO THE NATION MEDIA RELATIONS CAMPAIGN
MAKE A MEDIA CONTACT LIST. You may already have an existing media list from which you work on a regular basis. If not, with a little research you can create one to aid you in pursuing media outreach across your market. Your media list should include all major daily and community newspapers in the area, along with local broadcast news affiliates (ABC, NBC, CBS, Fox, etc.). Include those reporters and editors with whom you have an existing relationship and also round out the list to include:
· Community/metro reporters
· Youth reporters
· News assignment editors
REACH OUT TO REPORTERS WITH A COMPELLING PITCH. When sending your news release and media advisory to the media, you should use the opportunity to grab the reporter’s or editor’s attention with a brief but compelling pitch. Why does this matter to the reporter? Why should they care? What does this have to do with the local community? This is your opportunity to make the case for your—and your Scout’s—story and why it should be considered.
We’ve included sample language in the Resources section of this playbook for your reference. You should feel free to personalize the pitch to your tone and voice as much as possible. This language is simply a starting point. Remember, be brief and keep it relevant.
Suggested Media Outreach Timeline
Task / Suggested DateDevelop:
· Media advisory
· Media kit
o Localized Report to the Nation
o News release
o Fact sheets
· Media contact list
· Personalized pitch email or letter / By Wednesday, Feb. 6
Distribute media advisory. / By Tuesday, Feb. 12
Make pitch calls about Scout’s selection to the delegation. / By Thursday, Feb. 14
Distribute localized
Report to the Nation, press kit, and op-ed. / By Tuesday, Feb. 19
Make pitch calls to offer phone interviews. / By Tuesday, Feb. 19
Share any media coverage with online followers while your Scout is in Washington.
· Council, district, and/or unit Facebook
· Council, district, and/or unit Twitter / Ongoing during week of Feb. 25
Make follow-up calls to media to offer a
post-trip interview with your delegate. / By Thursday, Feb. 28
ENSURE THAT YOUR DELEGATE IS PREPARED FOR MEDIA INTERVIEWS. It is likely that members of the media covering this story will request an interview with the delegate. In advance of any interviews, you should make sure that your delegate is adequately prepared to speak with the media. It might make sense to prepare the Scout with a mock interview, asking questions about the upcoming trip, selection to the delegation, what they are looking forward to most, and why this trip is so important. Reviewing the core messages in the Resources section of this document will also be helpful. (Note: The BSA may schedule a call with the delegates to prepare for any potential media interviews.)
MAKE A PERSONAL CONNECTION WITH THE REPORTER. After your pitch, news release, and media advisory have been sent to those on your media list, follow up via phone to make a personal connection and gauge any interest they may have in covering the story. At this time, you can reinforce the assets you’re making available, whether it’s an invitation to see the delegate off to Washington, D.C., or an interview with the delegate and their parents or unit leader prior to departure.
PREP YOUR DELEGATE TO BRING BACK CONTENT TO SHARE
During the trip, there may be opportunities for the delegates to capture video interviews. Councils should come up with one or two questions that they’d like the delegate to answer on video during the trip to Washington, D.C. Questions could include:
· “How does Scouting make an impact where you live?”
· “Why do you think sharing the Report to the Nation with members of Congress is important?”
Delegates should also be encouraged to bring back photos of their trip to Washington, D.C., which can be shared on the council, district, or unit websites and social media channels.
DURING THE DELEGATE’S TRIP TO WASHINGTON, D.C.
ENGAGE OTHERS VIA SOCIAL MEDIA
· Share links to Report to the Nation news coverage with followers on the council, district, and/or unit social media channels.
· Update social media followers on the delegate’s stops during the Washington, D.C., visit, including photos from the trip as often as possible. In the Resources section, you’ll see the delegation’s agenda for the trip (for internal use only), which can be used as a guide for generating content to share online.
o For example, last year, the delegation participated in a wreath-laying ceremony at the Tomb of the Unknowns at Arlington National Cemetery. An appropriate post on social media the evening of that day would be:
§ “This afternoon, as part of the annual Report to the Nation trip to Washington, D.C., [Scout Name], a member of [pack/troop/crew/post/ship/team number] laid a wreath on the Tomb of the Unknowns, the burial site of unidentified American soldiers from WWI, WWII, and the Korean War. #BSAReportToNation” (Include a photo of the ceremony sent by the Scout, his parents, or the BSA)
o The delegation will attend the Gathering of Eagle Scouts on the Hill, hosted by U.S. Rep. (and Eagle Scout) Pete Sessions. Appropriate content could include:
§ “The Report to the Nation delegation, including [Scout Name] from [pack/troop/crew/post/ship/team number] is meeting with U.S. Rep. and Distinguished Eagle Scout Pete Sessions at the Gathering of Eagles on the Hill. #BSAReportToNation #EagleScouts” (Include a photo if possible)
o If you need photos or videos while the delegates are in Washington, please contact Nathan Johnson at 972-580-2498or .
· For Scouts who are older than 13 and have active social media accounts such as Facebook and Twitter, encourage them to share the statistics in the report with their friends and followers. Please encourage your delegate, if older than 13, to post photos from the trip on the council, district, or unit social media pages.
· Engage individuals/Scouts in discussion about the report through the unit, district, or council social media channels. Invite fans/followers to weigh in and encourage Scouts (age 13 and older) to weigh in.
· Post a blog about the Report to the Nation and the delegate’s selection on council websites. A template article (which can also be used in newsletters and e-newsletters) is included in the Resources section.
AFTER THE DELEGATE’S TRIP TO WASHINGTON
FOLLOW UP WITH THE MEDIA
Reporters may bite on the chance to interview delegates once they’ve returned home to discuss their trip to Washington, what they saw, and what they learned. It makes sense to follow up with the contacts on your media list to offer interviews with your Scout and/or his or her parents to garner additional media coverage. If possible, have a few high-quality photos on hand from the trip to share with print reporters.
SHARE THE REPORT WITH THE COMMUNITY
Once the report has been released to the media, share copies with your stakeholders in the community. You could collaborate with other councils to send a group of Scouts to present the report at the state capitol or encourage units to present at city council meetings. In the Resources section that follows, we have provided sample cover letters to include when sending to key internal (council board members) and external groups (municipal leaders, elected officials, school board members, existing and potential donors, etc.). You can use these letters as a starting point to share your personal story directly with those audiences that matter most to you as a council.
It also makes sense to get Scouts involved in sharing the report with the community.
· Have Scouts prepare a formal presentation of Report to the Nation that utilizes video or presentation programs such as PowerPoint or SlideRocket and deliver an oral presentation to:
o Local elected officials, including:
§ The mayor and city council
§ U.S. representatives and senators at district offices
§ State representatives and senators
o Board of the local council
o Local school board officials
o Parent teacher associations
o Their class at school
o Their parents
· Identify Scouts who can serve as spokespeople/interviewees for the media.
· Have Scouts reach out to the staff of their school newspaper to get one of their peers to write about the Report to the Nation, or if the Scouts are student writers, encourage them to cover it.