Page 155 - Crisis Communication Practical PR Strategies

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1 136 Crisis Communication
day, seven days a week. Industry organizations or affiliations that spe-
cialize in your line of business often have training seminars, webcasts
or videos that can be purchased for in-company training. For
example, the American Hotel & Lodging Association offers its
resources and training programmes to hotels across the country.
Likewise, the National Restaurant Association can be a useful source of
information when real-life emergencies occur.

Who are the media?

The training should include at least a brief discussion of the various
types of reporters and media, as well as their particular needs and
pressures. Understanding the different journalists and editors will
allow you to meet their needs:

Staff journalists: are idealistic, usually inexperienced, frequently
under pressure and underpaid. They can become aware of the
power of their position and can be difficult.
Freelance journalists: often specialist professionals, in for the long
haul. Self-employed, they want to build long-term relationships
and are looking for economical ways of working.
News journalists: working on tighter deadlines, will want shorter
quotes and opinions. They will be hard to reach and you need to
be very concise with them.
Features journalists: longer deadlines and more analytical.
Trade journalists: more likely to know your industry – and your
secrets. Their readers are also more literate, so the language and
acronyms used are more industry-specific than general.

Timing – internet/daily/weekly/monthly

Be aware that all these different journalists are working to different
deadlines and have different priorities. You should be aware of the
publishing deadline, too. For example, a monthly industry title that
comes out on the first of July may ‘close’ the issue on 22 June to allow
time for design, printing and distribution.
In the end, all journalists are looking for the same things. They all
want stories, ideas, information, anecdotes – and most of all they want
controversy. Your crisis will be fitted into the category of controversy if
at all possible. Was someone negligent? Whose fault was it? How could
you allow something like this to happen? But in hurricanes and floods