Stanford University School of Medicine
Media handbook
Table of Contents
1. The Office of Communications and Public Affairs (p.2)
2. Working with the News Media – (p.3)
3. The Strategic Decision to Talk to the Media – (p.4)
4. The Strategic Decision to Talk: 4 Levels of Risk – (p.5)
5. The Public’s Perception of Risk – (p.6)
6. Message Discipline and Bridging – (p.7)
7. Rules to Remember – (p.8)
8. Difficult Questions – (p.9)
9. The Keys to Effective Communication are Repetition and Consistency – (p.12)
10. Establishing Interview Ground Rules for Attribution – (p.14)
11. Other Ground Rules to Consider – (p.15)
12. Interview Strategies and Tips – (p.16)
13. The Nature of News – (p.17)
14. Find This Out Before an Interview – (p.19)
15. Interview Tips – (p.20)
16. Non-Verbal Communication – (p.21)
17. Appearing on Camera – (p.22)
18. Glossary of Media Terms – (p.23)
The Office of Communication and Public Affairs
As a scientific/medical expert, you are likely to be called upon to speak to the media about advances in your field and/or your work at the School of Medicine. This handbook is designed to help you through that process. You have another resource at your disposal: the medical school’s Office of Communication and Public Affairs. We have a staff of media relations professionals who work daily with reporters, editors and producers nationwide. We understand the needs of media representatives, who operate in a world apart from academic medicine. We can help screen media calls, help decide when an interview is appropriate and get answers to such key questions as the reporter’s deadline, the time needed for the interview and the kinds of questions the reporter is likely to ask. We can also offer insights on individual reporters who we may have worked with in the past.
For stories involving broadcast media, we can be involved from day one in organizing the shoot, including selecting locations and handling all of the logistics to ensure that things go smoothly. It is particularly important for us to be involved in shoots that take place in clinical settings and that include patients, as we will want to insure that HIPAA consents are signed and that there is minimal disruption to patient care activities.
Many interviews are routine. Some, however, involve highly sensitive issues. In these cases, we can help determine who is the best spokesperson on an issue, work with you to develop messages and talking points and do specialized preparation for media interviews.
You can reach the Office of Communication and Public Affairs at the numbers below or page our office anytime day or night at at (650) 723-8222, pager ID 25314.
Susan Ipaktchian, director of print & web communications
650-725-5375
Michelle Brandt, Associate Director, Media Relations and Digital Communications
650-723-0272
Paul Costello, chief communications officer
650-725-5370
Working with the News Media
To many, the thought of meeting the press is anxiety producing. The pressure doubles when people face a news interview in the midst of a serious emergency or crisis. The reason for the underlying fear is the suspicion that statements will be taken out of context, misconstrued, or misinterpreted to make the interviewee look bad.
In fact, some spokespeople have risked their reputations and careers through missteps in the media. Being under the media spotlight is a challenge but can also present great opportunities to get your message out to intended audiences.
Turning stress into opportunity comes with understanding, preparation, and training.
You have a much better chance of turning interviews into opportunities if you:
v Know what reporters need and how they work
v Focus on your own messages
To be sure, you cannot control the outcome of a news interview — but you can influence the outcome by knowing what to accomplish and what not to do. You can control what you say.
By following these principles, your media interviews will be more satisfactory for you as well as for the news media. Equally important, you will have established yourself as a reliable and credible source of information.
Answer Questions
Give the requested information if it is available. If you are not able to reveal the information, explain why.
Be Truthful and Accurate
Provide accurate information even if the story doesn’t speak well of your organization. Never attempt to mislead a journalist — the word will spread that you are not a trusted source.
Summarize
Don’t over answer. Get to the point. Be concise. Saying too much increases your chances of either confusing the interviewer or saying something you later wish you hadn’t said.
Sound Like a Human Being
Answer questions with simple words, not jargon. Remember your audience does not know or care to understand insider language.
Be Specific
Support your points with specific evidence.
Deal with Results, Not Process
Talk about the results of what you’ve done, not the process that got you there.
Honor Deadlines
Make sure the necessary and appropriate information is provided on time. Always return reporters’ calls, even if it’s just to tell them you can’t meet their needs.
Be Consistent
Talk to the media during bad times as well as good times — it’s essential to establish your credibility.
Credibility with the media is especially important when editors and broadcasters decide how much weight to give your version of a controversial situation.
Many people enter into an interview situation assuming that they’re having a conversation with a reporter who controls everything and that their role is simply to answer the reporter’s questions and hope for the best. The interview is not a conversation, and it is not a level playing field. However, there are several areas where you can exercise, with confidence, a sense of control in an interview situation.
Let’s examine what the reporter controls, and what you control:
The Reporter’s Advantages
v Knows in advance what he/she wants to ask and then gets to ask the questions
v Decides what elements will go into the story (visuals, quotes, sound clips, statistics, etc)
v Writes the story and for television, controls or influences the editing process
Your Advantages
v You can decide whether or not to do the interview
v Influence the interview location
v Decide in advance how long the interview will last
v You are the expert
v You decide what to say and how to say it. This means: Review your messages regularly.
The Strategic Decision to Talk to the Media
Agreeing to do or not to do an interview is a strategic decision. There are risks involved either way. Participating in media interviews affords an opportunity to:
v Deliver a carefully crafted message
v Project a desired image
v Get your message through to the public as well as specific, targeted audiences through credible and influential media
Examine the climate you are in:
v The reporter’s name and credentials
v The reporter’s reputation for fairness
v The news value of the working story; what related and unrelated stories are already in the news by this reporter, and by other reporters
v The key audiences/constituencies
v Other elements to be included in this story
v Scheduled air/run date of the story and why
v Others being interviewed for this story
Examine the characteristics of the medium in which you might appear:
Medium Characteristics
Television à Shallow, short, visually driven
Local station: Local focus
National broadcast network: General focus
National cable network: General (CNN,FOX)
Narrow (CNBC)
Radio à Brevity, frequency, immediacy
Local station: Local focus
National broadcast network: General focus
Regional broadcast network: General focus
Print à More depth, content driven, can set the tone for TV and radio media
Daily metropolitan paper: General focus
Industry trade publication: More inside detail
The Strategic Decision to Talk: 4 Levels of Risk
There are four primary interview risk levels that organizations and individuals should consider as they prepare to engage the media. Each interview situation presents different risks and opportunities. Generally speaking, increase in risk corresponds with increased negative news value of the story. The risk is that a spokesperson will misspeak, be quoted out of context, or convey an incorrect message.
General interview. Examples: Providing expert commentary on a medical issue or research.
Goal Maximize the opportunity to get positive messages across
Risk Low
Persuasive or competitive interview. Examples: Showcasing your medical or scientific research. In persuasive interview situations, the spokesperson is seeking message dominance for a particular point of view.
Goal: Anticipate the competitor’s argument and determine the most effective (persuasive) messages
Risk: Medium
Crisis interview. Example: Responding during a negative incident, emergency, or crisis.
Goal: To mitigate and contain damage
Risk: High
Investigative. Example: Responding to a sensitive issue that depicts the organization as guilty, based on a prosecutorial thesis.
Goal: Correct inaccuracies and provide clear, strong messages to overcome attack
Risk: Extremely high
The Public’s Perception of Risk
Effective risk communication seeks to provide a context for the danger posed to the public, calm fears and explain the situation in clear, reassuring terms.
Messages delivered in high-risk environments follow a basic formula: acknowledge the incident or issue in a clear and accurate way; provide background information on how this risk developed; demonstrate the organization’s credible track record and offer solid solutions to mitigate and prevent a reoccurrence.
Every day, we willingly accept some amount of risk, whether it’s crossing a busy street or driving to work. There are some risky behaviors that people accept based on the level of risk involved and the benefits they derive from the behavior.
People are less likely to accept risks that:
v Are outside their control.
v They don’t understand.
v Are perceived as unfair.
v They derive no benefit from.
v Are imposed upon them.
v Are not acts of nature.
v Are associated with infamous events.
Message Discipline and Bridging
Messages are the core of any media interview you do or presentation you may give, formal or informal. Messages inform the reader or viewer about the importance or relevance of research, breakthroughs, or innovations. Messages are statements of clear intent and purpose.
Creating the message is the first challenge in preparing for a media interview. Delivering the message and ensuring that it sticks is perhaps the more significant challenge. The bridge is a technique or rhetorical tool that allows you to connect from extemporaneous territory during a interview and link you back to the core messages of importance. The object of responding to a reporter’s question is to respond as briefly as possible and then use a verbal bridge to get to the message you want to convey. Some examples of good verbal bridges:
v But the point is...
v But the real question is...
v But the fact is...
v What is important is...
v We have to remember that...
Rules to Remember
The Microphone Is Always On & The Notebook Is Always Open
Whether it’s print or broadcast, everything said before, during and after the interview is on the record. Once the interview is underway it can’t be stopped unless you say so. It is unwise to make a statement and moments later tell a reporter, “That was off the record.”
Choose Words Wisely
Undisciplined remarks can and will make news. Don’t try to avoid mistakes or shift the blame. Deal with them.
v Don’t Volunteer Negative Information
You could look very defensive trying to anticipate the “real” nature of the question or questions you think may be coming. Pre-emptive strikes against potential negative questions only work in high school debate classes. And they may not be necessary, because those questions might not come up. Wait until negative questions are asked and be ready to bridge to your message as they come up.
v Maintain Your Composure
Maintain a calm, professional demeanor especially in a hostile interview and never verbally attack the reporter. If the interview has completely gone astray end the interview politely by saying, “I’m sorry, that’s all the time I have today. You are welcome to call or email me with additional questions.” For television, if the camera is still rolling, be pleasant and apologetic and quietly conclude the interview.
v Don’t Exhibit Hostility or Sarcasm
Sarcasm and hostility never work. In fact, they usually backfire, in print and in broadcast. Reporters love to use hostile, sarcastic or angry quotes, or sounds bites in their stories, believing they reveal more about the institution or person than everything else the spokesperson had to say. They are “good copy,” or “great TV.”
v Don’t Bluff
Don’t go into an interview in a message void. Bluffing in response to a question is a recipe for disaster. Don’t “wing” it. Delay the interview until you are fully prepared, having reviewed and rehearsed key messages and supporting points.
Don’t repeat a negative in your answer, as in “No, we are not a bunch of nitwits...” Simply say, “That’s not true — we are very smart at what we do.”
Difficult Questions
Here are some examples of difficult questions. Your message strategy and your bridge will help you deal with them. Recognizing them is half the battle.
The loaded question à The loaded question always contains a negative or false premise. If you accept it or ignore it, the negative premise stands. Listen closely to all questions.
v Set the record straight
v Bridge to your message statement
Example:
Q. The CFA recently published a scathing report on your company, how can you defend some of the practices they exposed?
A. The CFA report was useful for those of us who are concerned about weeding out some of the bad apples in the industry but the fact is that my company, Profina, has been leading the charge from within the industry to help correct some of the problems cited by the CFA.
The either/or question à This tactic forces you to chose between two undesirable positions. Accepting either one is a no-win situation.
v Don’t accept either damaging premise. Reframe the question to put your position in a more favorable light.
Example:
Q. Does Profina take a client’s first monthly payment as a fee or do you have other ways of extracting fees without the client’s knowledge?