Four Things to Tell Your Staff On Interview Days
Last week, I wrote an article about a tricky journalistic tactic.
I described a situation in which reporters keep their cameras rolling—after you’ve completed your “official” interview—in the hopes of capturing a less scripted moment from you.
A couple of readers wrote in and added a point to that story that I’ve never thought to make on this blog before.
John Barnett wrote:
“While 99.9% of the reporters I’ve work with are great folks, there are going to be ones with agendas, and they won’t hesitate to use roaming around for b-roll phase to find spur-of-the-moment interviews. Had a “perfect storm” event occur once where the Boss assigned an inexperienced escort to a media team with an agenda who wound up interviewing the MOST disgruntled employee in the place.
Yeah, that one left a mark.”
Art Aiello added:
“I’ve found that camerapersons can be a little like mice–they disappear into little nooks and crannies looking for a shot and are very hard to find and keep track of. When I escort the media through our facility, I try to do it with one other person, so that if one needs to accompany the cameraperson another can stay with the reporter(s).”
John and Art are absolutely right. It’s not enough to do everything right as a spokesperson. If the journalists who come to interview you wander down the hallways of your office without an escort and make casual conversation with the wrong person, you could end up with a bruising news story.
Still, I can think of an obvious complication. Let’s say you have an escort assigned to the reporter and each member of the crew. They need to use the restroom or walk to their van to get a piece of equipment. You escort them—but on their walk, they spot an employee and say, “Hey, can I ask you a quick question?”
You have a choice: You can tell the reporter that the employee they’ve stopped isn’t authorized to speak, but that obstructionism could end up in the news story. Or, alternatively, you can prepare your staff for that moment.
On days that a reporter is coming to your place of business, you might consider:
- Sending an email to staff reminding them of your media policy. In some cases, that might mean that only authorized spokespersons have the authority to speak to the press, meaning they say, “I’m sorry, I’m not the best person to answer that question,” and keep walking.
- Asking your staff to remove any confidential or sensitive documents from their desks. You might even ask them to do a little housekeeping to leave a neat appearance.
- Briefing staff with your key messages so they know what the “company line” is in case they are allowed to respond.
- Asking them to contact you if they see a member of the crew or a reporter roaming the hallways without an escort.
I’d like to hear from you on this one. How have you handled this situation? What tips would you offer other PR representatives who find themselves dealing with a similar circumstance?
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I have always included in the ground rules an agreement to never shoot closeups of any computer screen. They can shoot wider shots and closeups of fingers, typing, but no screens.
Julie,
That’s a great tip! Thank you for leaving that terrific idea for other readers.
Thanks for reading,
Brad
Brad,
Deeply honored to be included in this post. I agree heartily with Julie that a clear, common-sense set of media ground rules should be in place. The best way to overcome the situation I ran across is: PREP, plain and simple.
– Prep the media with negotiated ground rules designed to help the reporter get an accurate, fair story that allows for transparency as well as company concerns and restrictions.
– Prep the spokesperson on the message and practice the interview in advance
– As you pointed out, alert the company staff about the media visit and prep them on the message and provide some basics for media interviews
– Really prep the escort and make sure that person understands the ground rules, the message, and that the media crew is genetically attached to his or her hip until the media team is driving away.
I think all that is very doable while appearing professional and supportive of reporters visiting for interviews. It just has to be a well prepped TEAM effort.
Hi Brad:
We recently had a situation where a member of the broadcast media chose to interview an employee who was, shall we say, “coarse.” Not negative, but nowhere near polished. After the interview, I asked the reporter if she would keep in mind that the person she interviewed would not have been my first choice for an interview. She responded by explaining that all of her stories are a reflection of her professionally, and that she wouldn’t include anything that would make her–and thereby us–look foolish. And she was true to her word; she edited around the unpolished and sometimes crude comments and captured something that really sparkled. I will gladly work with her again in the future as a result. However, I also learned that I cannot ever expose any employees to the media without first briefing each and every one of them first, so that if they are interviewed they know how to handle themselves. I also agree with the comments above about notifying all staff about the presence of the media and advising them as to the ground rules for dealing with them if the situation arises.
Unless it’s something for a sweeps piece, virtually all of the TV reporters and photogs I’ve worked with want you out in front of your building. It’s simply easier and faster for them.
But, on those occasions when they need/want to come inside, I always go for a neutral site (i.e. conference room). That locale should have an escape route…which your office probably doesn’t. While heading out the door if an interview goes south doesn’t look great…it beats the alternative of kicking them out of your office.
I like the idea of merging options 1 and 4 that Brad outlines above. Things just “stay cleaner” if staff direct a member of the media to you…and advise you if they see or interact with one.
I think most employees should be trained to answer the ‘who you are’ and ‘what you do questions.’ Beyond that, when they get hit w/ something they shouldn’t tackle, a smart way for them to differ is to say, ‘You know who you should talk to is..’ or “Ms. X can help you with that” and lead them that way. Part of the employee prep and training is of course, to make sure they know who the experts and speakers for the organization are. FWIW.
Brad,
Dealing with the media on a game-day in hockey is usually our busiest time.
5 minutes after a game has ended, we are required by the league to open the dressing room for players to be made available. If it is a controversial game, in those 5 minutes, we need to prep players on possible questions. Once the room is open, win or lose, this is our busiest time because we need to monitor what the players are saying so we can make sure the coach is on the same page when we make him available to the media. Once the majority of the media has gotten what they need, we will call out that the head coach will be made available in 5 minutes in the press conference room. At that point I leave the room because it shows the media that I am going to get him. Most of the media does file out to the press conference room, but we do have one or two stragglers so I have another member of the PR staff stay in the room and make sure our players are protected from any inappropriate questions. Its our PR staff’s job to make sure the remaining media wraps up their player interviews so we can close the room. Once everyone is out, we have a security guard that stands outside of the dressing room and doesn’t allow any media back in without someone from the PR staff. That forces them to the press conference room to speak to the head coach.
Having the liberty of making our first speaker (in this case our players) available first and then a second speaker (the head coach) available in a another room is our way to direct the media out of the busiest area of our media availability (dressing room) and into a more controlled setting with just the head coach. Once the head coach is finished answering questions, the media goes to file their stories. Occasionally, we will escort specific media members back into the dressing room for a one-on-one with a player that we monitor.
Kimber,
Thank you for your thoughtful comment and for providing me and my readers with an up-close look into the world of sports PR!
I imagine that a similar degree of media management is pervasive throughout political PR as well; probably less so for representatives from nonprofit or advocacy organizations and many companies. Do reporters ever bristle at the high degree of management, or are they grateful that you make players and the coach available to them with regularity? Perhaps your final sentence (that you occasionally arrange one-on-one interviews for reporters) answers that question – I imagine that they’re appreciative for the access, even if it’s monitored.
Thanks for weighing in on the blog. It’s good to have you aboard. 🙂
Brad
Brad – some very good tips here, but I have to agree w/Davina that if your policy is that employees aren’t to talk to the media, they still need to provide a thoughtful response. Simply saying “I’m not the best person to talk to…” then turning and walking away, speaks volumes.
Everyone in the organization should know the company’s mission (key message!) and know who to send the media to. New employee indroctination is a good place to start this education.
Davina and Rick –
I agree with your suggestion that every employee should be able to answer the basic questions, and would supplement my first point with your addition.
That said, I’ve found very few companies that are actually that proactive in training ALL employees. My media training workshops are full of senior- and mid-level employees but rarely junior-level ones; I’m guessing this type of media relations training (even if only in the form of a memo) rarely gets done with junior staff. Perhaps it’s something I need to begin emphasizing in my workshops.
Employee orientation is one good time to provide that kind of training, but it’s something that would need regular reminders. Plus, companies would need to remember to train all temps, seasonal workers, receptionists, and security guards, as well.
Bottom line is that you make a really important point, and I’m glad you added it to the blog!
Best wishes,
Brad
As far as the reporters getting “ruffled feathers,” it happens, but I can assume that it is the same with any PR industry. My job is to protect the image of the organization to the best of my ability. If a media member had the chance to speak to a player when the room was open and didn’t get him, then its on them. All of the players are made available after the game. However, it has happened when players duck out of the room and myself or our staff goes back to the lounge to get them. If a player refuses to come out, I will have the talk with them on why. It is usually because of a play in the game so I give them answers to tough questions that they might have to deal with. If they still don’t come out, I put it on me that the team did not make him available. That way, the player does not look bad for blowing off the media. With us, its better that we take the hit because you don’t want fans to turn against a player that is a public figure.
They really can’t get too annoyed because we make everyone available, its just that they need to stick to the availability times. Just like above, if they didn’t get the player when the room was open and he was in there, then its on them. Same with if they’re not present for the availability times, its on them to explain to their editors why their stories do not have quotes.
I would never let me wander around a facility un-escorted. However, if you are doing something so dastardly that you are concerned about it getting out…. it’s my job to find out.
From the point of view of any good journalist there is no such thing as a pre-condition to an interview. Any discussion that ignores this fact is bush league. If there’s a mic or camera in the location you better assume it’s on. Sports is occassionaly journalism, just like any other part of the ENTERTAINMENT world.
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