IL NET
an ILRU/NCIL National Training and
Technical Assistance Project
Expanding the Power of the
Independent Living Movement
Making
News:
How the IL Movement Cultivates Media Relationships
A National Conference
October 16-18, 2002
Oklahoma City, OK
Contributors to the training
materials:
Jennifer
Burnett Janine Bertram
Kemp
Brad
Williams Darrell
Lynn Jones
Raweewan
Buppapong Kristy Langbehn
Richard
Petty Dawn Heinsohn
© 2002 IL NET, an ILRU/NCIL
Training and Technical Assistance Project
ILRU Program NCIL
2323 S. Shepherd Street 1916 Wilson Boulevard
Suite 1000 Suite
209
Houston, Texas 77019 Arlington,
Virginia 22201
713-520-0232 (V) 703-525-3406
(V)
713-520-5136 (TTY) 703-525-4153
(TTY)
713-520-5785 (FAX) 703-525-3409
(FAX)
ilru@ilru.org 1-877-525-3400
(V/TTY - toll free)
http://www.ilru.org ncil@ncil.org
http://www.ncil.org
Permission is granted for
duplication of any portion of this manual, providing that the following credit
is given to the project: Developed as part of the IL NET: an ILRU/NCIL
National Training and Technical Assistance Project.
IL NET is funded
through a special provisions cooperative agreement with the U.S. Department of
Education, Rehabilitation Services Administration, Agreement No. H132B99002.
Making News: How the IL Movement
Cultivates Media Relationships
A National Conference
Participant’s Manual
Table of Contents
Agenda........................................................................................................................................... i
About the Trainers..................................................................................................................... iv
List of Trainers and IL NET Staff............................................................................................. v
About ILRU................................................................................................................................. vii
About NCIL................................................................................................................................. vii
About IL NET............................................................................................................................. viii
Learning Objectives................................................................................................................... 1
Media Checklist........................................................................................................................... 2
Tips for Getting Coverage........................................................................................................ 3
Press Release Basics................................................................................................................ 4
Press Release Layout, on letterhead.................................................................................... 5
Write an Op-Ed............................................................................................................................ 6
ImPRESSive – Media Tip Sheets for Advocates................................................................. 8
........... Building
and Maintaining Relationships with Reporters................................................ 9
........... Creating
Working Media Lists....................................................................................... 15
........... On
the Record & Off the Record Controlling the Story................................................ 20
........... How
to shift focus on a story........................................................................................... 27
........... Tips
for Interviews Part I: Newspaper............................................................................ 34
........... Tips
for interviews Part II: Radio................................................................................... 40
........... Tips
for interviews Part III: Television........................................................................... 46
........... Getting
Your Message into National Stories................................................................ 50
Newspaper Articles.................................................................................................................. 56
Example Press Coverage of a Disability Rights Issue................................................... 82
Resources................................................................................................................................ 113
PowerPoint Presentation..................................................................................................... 115
MAKING
NEWS:
HOW THE IL
MOVEMENT
8:30 Continental Breakfast
9:00 – 9:20 Introductions
Shifting the Paradigm
from Medical Model to
Civil Rights/Independent
Living
9:20–10:30 Motivational Panel Discussion
· Changing attitudes
· Being the “source” or media spokesperson.
· Discussion about language.
10:30-10:45 Break
Developing the Message
10:45-11:15 Large Group Exercise – Developing the Message
· What is the IL philosophy, according to the group.
· What’s your measuring stick? True to purpose?
11:15-12:15 Small Group Exercise (to develop the message)
12:15 – 1:45 Lunch on Your Own
Working with the Media
1:45 – 2:15 Overview
of Media. The different types of media, how they work, what works best for what
type of activity.
· Wall between editorial and news desk/reporters
· Print media
· Broadcast media
· Electronic media
2:15 – 3:15 The
Press Release
· How to use a press release effectively
· How the newsroom works.
3:15 – 3:30 Break
3:30 – 4:40 Exercise - Develop an angle to pitch to local
reporter, letter to
editor,
piggy-back to make news locally. Report back to large group.
4:40 – 5:00 Making
media advocacy a part of your daily work.
· What is media advocacy?
· A SILC Model
Homework. Pick up newspaper,
watch News tonight. Any stories that can be used to pitch the disability rights
message?
8:30 Continental Breakfast
9:00 – 9:15 Review
of concepts learned in first day.
Check
homework, discuss possible issues.
Keys to Building Relationships
9:15 – 10:45 Exercises:
Role Plays for Building a Relationship and Dealing with
an
“on-the-spot” situation
10:45 –11:00 Break
11:00-12:00 Media
Panel from Norman, Oklahoma (t.v., radio, newspaper)
· Pam Henry, former Supervisor of News Room for PBS
Station
OETA, Oklahoma City, OK
· Patrick McGuigan, former Managing Editor, Daily
Oklahoman,
Oklahoma
City, OK
· Heather Spencer, Morning and Evening News Anchor,
NPR radio,
Norman,
OK
12:00-1:30 Lunch
on Your Own
Developing a Media Plan
1:30 - 2:15 The
Editors. Who are they and what is their role, different types of
editors,
how can we work with them?
· Letter to the editor/value of letter to editor
campaign
· The op-ed
· The editorial board visit
· Deciding frequency of contact
2:15 – 2:30 Planning
an effective Press conference
2:30 – 3:15 The
Media Plan. What it is and how it benefits your organization.
3:15 – 3:30 Break
3:30 – 5:00 Exercise:
Creating a media plan. Small group
Report
back.
8:30 Continental Breakfast
9:00 – 9:15 Review of Where We Are
Developing and/or Using
Existing Marketing Campaigns
9:15 – 10:30 An Example – the TRIPIL Campaign
· ad examples
· attitude shifts
· marketing their services
NCIL Media Kit
· what it is
· how it was developed
10:30-10:45 Break
10:45-11:50 The Corporate Connection
AT&T Broadband
AAPD & Torch Rally
11:50-12:00 Wrap-Up
ABOUT THE
TRAINERS
Jennifer Burnett has been involved in the disability rights movement
since 1992. She is currently Project Director of PA Transition to Home, a
nursing home transition project, and coordinates the Power statewide
conferences in Pennsylvania and Maryland, designed to empower people with
disabilities. Jennifer has developed and promoted a training curriculum to
promote the disability rights message at the grassroots level. She is committed
to working with the disability community to incorporate and develop advocacy
strategies, which use the media as a tool for changing attitudes towards
disability and understanding of the disability experience by the general
public. The training modules can be used and adjusted to meet the needs of the
sponsoring organizations, and trainings have ranged from an hour and a half to
two days. The training has been
sponsored by AAPD, PA and MD SILC, TASH, ADAPT, and numerous other smaller
organizations.
Burnett is a frequent
contributor to MOUTH and Ragged Edge magazines, and writes a Ragged
Edge column called the “Media Edge.”
Janine Bertram Kemp is the President of Cedar Media, LLC, a
communications and media training firm. She was formerly Chairman of the Board
of Evan Kemp Associates, a retail outlet for rehabilitation and transportation
products. Prior to joining the business world, she spent over twenty years as a
consultant and community builder in the disability rights and prison reform
movements. She is President of the board of the Disability Rights Center and
also serves on the board of the National Spinal Cord Injury Association. She
has been a member of Not Dead Yet since its inception, and is proud to be one
of the founding members of Capital area ADAPT.
Brad Williams is the executive director of the New York Statewide
Independent Living Council. Previously he held the position of executive
director of the Glens Falls Independent Living Center for nine years. Brad has
extensive experience in coordinating media campaigns for systems advocacy,
including a four-month campaign with the New York State Attorney General’s
Office to support a Federal District Court decision mandating that each county
needs to ensure the full accessibility of polling places; a two-year campaign
to obtain a Medicaid buy-in for New Yorkers with disabilities; and a two-month
campaign to force a reversal of a building code decision that would have
severely limited the new accessible housing stock. He is currently involved in
a six-month campaign to enact state legislation that will ensure that New York
complies with the 1999 Olmstead U.S. Supreme Court decision.
Jennifer Burnett
135 Galen Hall Road
Reinholds, Pennsylvania
17569
(717) 335-3340 (voice)
(717) 335-3336 (fax)
(717) 951-1149 (cell)
jburnett@dejazzd.com
Janine Bertram Kemp
P. O. Box 313
Rododendron, Oregon 97049
(503) 622-6387 (voice)
JanineBK@aol.com
Brad Williams
New York Statewide Independent
Living Council
111 Washington Avenue, Suite
101
Albany, New York 12210
(518) 427-1060 (voice)
(518) 427-1139 (fax)
nysilc@nysilc.org
IL NET
STAFF
Executive Director Administrative
Coordinator
lfrieden@ilru.org lredd@ilru.org
Program Director Materials
Production Specialist
repetty@compuserve.com heinsohn@ilru.org
Training Director
lrichards@ilru.org
ILRU Program
2323 S. Shepherd
Suite 1000
Houston, TX 77019
713-520-0232 (V)
713-520-5136 (TTY)
713-520-5785 (FAX)
ilru@ilru.org
http://www.ilru.org
NCIL Anne-Marie
Hughey
Executive Director
hughey@ncil.org
NCIL
1916 Wilson Boulevard
Suite 209
Arlington, VA
22201
703-525-3406 (V)
703-525-4153 (TTY)
703-525-3409 (FAX)
1-877-525-3400 (V/TTY - toll free)
ncil@ncil.org
http://www.ncil.org
Kristy Langbehn
Project
Logistics Coordinator
kristy@ncil.org
Training
Specialist
darrell@ncil.org
Project
Assistant
toony@ncil.org
The Independent Living
Research Utilization (ILRU) Program was established in 1977 to serve as a
national center for information, training, research, and technical assistance
for independent living. In the mid-1980’s,
it began conducting management training programs for executive directors and
middle managers of independent living centers in the U.S.
ILRU has developed an
extensive set of resource materials on various aspects of independent living,
including a comprehensive directory of programs providing independent living
services in the U.S. and Canada.
ILRU is a program of TIRR, a
nationally recognized, free-standing rehabilitation facility for persons with
physical disabilities. TIRR is part of
TIRR Systems, a not-for-profit corporation dedicated to providing a continuum
of services to individuals with disabilities.
Since 1959, TIRR has provided patient care, education, and research to
promote the integration of people with physical and cognitive disabilities into
all aspects of community living.
Founded in 1982, the
National Council on Independent Living is a membership organization
representing independent living centers and individuals with disabilities. NCIL has been instrumental in efforts to
standardize requirements for consumer control in management and delivery of
services provided through federally-funded independent living centers.
Until 1992, NCIL’s efforts
to foster consumer control and direction in independent living services through
changes in federal legislation and regulations were coordinated through an
extensive network and involvement of volunteers from independent living centers
and other organizations around the country.
Since 1992, NCIL has had a national office in Arlington, Virginia, just
minutes by subway or car from the major centers of government in Washington,
D.C. While NCIL continues to rely on
the commitment and dedication of volunteers from around the country, the
establishment of a national office with staff and other resources has
strengthened its capacity to serve as the voice for independent living in
matters of critical importance in eliminating discrimination and unequal
treatment based on disability.
Today, NCIL is a strong
voice for independent living in our nation’s capital. With your participation, NCIL can deliver the message of
independent living to even more people who are charged with the important
responsibility of making laws and creating programs designed to assure equal
rights for all.
ABOUT THE
IL NET
This training program is
sponsored by the IL NET, a collaborative project of the Independent Living
Research Utilization (ILRU) of Houston and the National Council on Independent
Living (NCIL).
The IL NET is a national
training and technical assistance project working to strengthen the independent
living movement by supporting Centers for Independent Living (CILs) and
Statewide Independent Living Councils (SILCs).
IL NET activities include
workshops, national teleconferences, technical assistance, on‑line
information, training materials, fact sheets, and other resource materials on
operating, managing, and evaluating centers and SILCs.
The mission of the
IL NET is to assist in building strong and effective CILs and SILCs which
are led and staffed by people who practice the independent living philosophy.
The IL NET operates
with these objectives:
Ø Assist CILs and SILCs in managing effective
organizations by providing a continuum of information, training, and technical
assistance.
Ø Assist CILs and SILCs to become strong
community advocates/change agents by providing a continuum of information, training,
and technical assistance.
Ø Assist CILs and SILCs to develop strong,
consumer-responsive services by providing a continuum of information, training,
and technical assistance.
MAKING
NEWS:
CULTIVATES
MEDIA RELATIONSHIPS
Learning
Objectives
Participants will be able
to:
1. Gain comfort in speaking
to media representatives;
2. Acquire tools to develop
a media plan in your organization;
3. Learn how to use the
power of the media to change attitudes and strengthen advocacy efforts; and
4. Develop skills in
creating a message and a marketing campaign.
Local