SportsTurf provides current, practical and technical content on issues relevant to sports turf managers, including facilities managers. Most readers are athletic field managers from the professional level through parks and recreation, universities.
Issue link: https://read.dmtmag.com/i/34725
low the ADSR approach in executing the rest of the process. The first step is Antici- pate. You’ve been to enough movies and seen enough TV cop shows to have a good idea of what that reporter will be asking you. Run through the journalist’s checklist of the Five W’s and the H. You can easily answer the “who, what, when and where” questions. They are very fact-oriented and not subject to much interpretation. Develop a handout of facts about the story to give to the reporter. That will save time as well as improve the reporter’s accuracy. Consider the visual possibilities for this particular story. Take the reporter to the “where.” You will get more coverage and decrease the pos- sibility of a misinterpretation. The “why and how” questions will be much more subjective and the likely focus of an interview. To handle the why and how questions, you must move to the Develop an Agenda stage. Decide what you are going to say before the start of the interview. This is the message you want to get across. It should address the reporter’s question but be totally based on what is best for you and your or- ganization. Use it in a pre-interview as well as the one where the camera is rolling or the re- porter is taking notes. Never say “No com- ment.” That never looks or sounds good. If you can’t answer give a substantive reason such as “This is currently going through the courts, and I wouldn’t want to jeopardize that process,” or “We don’t have the answer to that right now, but we should know more in the next 48 hours.” Never ask to go “off the record.” Every reporter and source seems to have a different idea of what that means. If you must say something but don’t want your name associated with it, be very clear when talking to the reporter. This is no time for subtlety. The execution of the agenda comes next so remember to Speak in Bites. The world of TV is built on 10 to 15 second sound bites. Learn to speak that language and use it for radio, newspapers and online inter- views as well as TV. Here’s why. A 15 sec- ond bite will undoubtedly be narrowly focused (as in, focused on your agenda). You won’t have time to move off the sub- ject. The 15 second bite also greatly reduces your chance of being misquoted. Give a 60 second answer and expect the reporter to get down every word—not a chance. Use a personal experience or anecdote to get your point across. Don’t be afraid to express your feelings and show some emotion. Just don’t allow yourself to move into the melodra- matic. Think 15 seconds as your time limit for every question the reporter asks. Keep the focus on your agenda. The final stage is Repetition. Know how to get your agenda across. Keep repeating it. Address the reporter’s question briefly, and then bring it back to your agenda. If you follow those steps, you will in- crease your confidence in handling any kind of a media situation. ■ Dr. Max Utsler teaches journalism at the University of Kansas. He is a former TV jour- nalist and has trained business executives in how to deal with the media for the past 25 years. www.stma.org SportsTurf 31