The Media Bullhorn: Reaching Out to the Media

Engaging the media is essential to spreading the word about KnowHow2GO. Media coverage is an effective way to communicate the campaign's key messages to the larger community and to target audiences such as students and their influencers.

Regard your outreach with the media as a collaborative partnership – you want to reach the public, and the media provides a good outlet for such an effort. Don't view your interactions with the media as too daunting. Journalists like to report compelling stories, and you have a good one to tell.

But neither media relations nor press coverage happen by chance – they each require careful planning and execution. By understanding the media, you will be able to create opportunities to promote both the campaign and your organization's role in helping young people make their college dreams a reality.

• Identifying spokespeople. You will need to identify a group of individuals who can serve as local spokespeople for the campaign at community events and with the media. Spokespeople should be trusted members of the community who are media savvy, well-informed about the campaign and can communicate its messages. Sample spokespeople include:
  • A teacher or administrator at a local school
  • A prominent business owner who is active in community affairs
  • A president of the local chapter or affiliate of a professional association
  • A religious leader of a prominent church, synagogue or mosque
  • A program manager with a youth-based organization
  • A local elected official who regards college access as a public policy priority
  • Students in the target audience who are actively engaged in the campaign 
• Creating media lists. A good media list is key to reaching the right reporters and getting your story covered. Your list may include reporters, editors, publishers, broadcast producers or radio personalities. To create a useful list:
  • Review your organization's media list (if it maintains one). If your organization does not have a database, develop an initial list of relevant media outlets and contacts in your community.
  • Identify reporters at the target outlets who cover college access or higher education issues. Locate the newsroom's phone number on the media organization's Web site or in the White Pages and call to ask for the appropriate contact. You could review the news outlet's Web site to learn the bylines on relevant stories; news organizations frequently list emails and phone numbers for individual reporters.
  • Include assignment editors. When you can't find an education reporter, they are a good alternative.
  • Review your list on a monthly basis to ensure that your contacts are up-to-date. Ensure that the journalists on your list are still with the same news organization and covering the same beat.
• Types of reporters. Conduct outreach to reporters who are most likely to have an interest in the campaign and local efforts. Reporters who cover these areas would be good matches:
  • Community issues
  • Economic disparities
  • Education, particularly issues affecting local schools
  • Higher education, including college access
  • Challenges facing immigrant populations
  • Public private partnerships or philanthropic efforts

• Building relationships. To generate news coverage for the campaign and local activities, try to build relationships with the media. It's easier to convince a reporter or editor to cover your story if you've developed a rapport with them. To successfully engage the media, you must:
  • Know whom to contact. Call the reporters you think will be most interested in specific topic you are describing.
  • Identify yourself and your organization. Journalists receive numerous calls from organizations every day, so it is important to remind them of who you are and the organization you represent.
  • Be direct. Explain, in a concise manner, exactly why you are calling – whether it is to provide them with new information about the campaign or to try to persuade them to write a story.
  • Localize your story. Reporters and editors like local angles for their stories. Make sure you have information about KnowHow2GO efforts in your community.
  • Humanize your story. Reporters like to cover stories that show some impact in daily lives of their readers or viewers, particularly those with some consumer interest.
  • Respect deadlines. Reporters work under tight deadlines, so avoid calling print reporters in the late afternoon or broadcast journalists right before a newscast.
  • Be flexible and accommodating. If you are sensitive to a reporter's schedule, the chances of your story receiving coverage is more likely.
  • Be easy to find. Share your contact information with reporters, so that you're more likely to be added to their rolodex.
  • Say thanks. Send notes to reporters to thank them for their time, even if they don't cover your event or story.
• Distributing news. You will need to put in place efficient mechanisms for distributing news and information about events to media organizations. Cast a wide net to increase your chances of reporters learning about events.
  • Daybooks. Daybooks provide reporters with a daily listing of scheduled press conferences, briefings and other events in the area. (You can find contact information for media daybooks in the White Pages; start by reaching out to the Associated Press.)
  • Meetings/briefings with journalists. Try to arrange one-on-one meetings with reporters or editorial boards for your partners and spokespeople.
  • Advisories and press releases. Email or fax your news and information on events to media outlets directly. A sample press release is included at the end of this section. 

• Story angles and ideas. Consider hosting a brainstorming session with other partners to develop creative news angles.
  • Identify local students who have fulfilled their college aspirations, particularly those who are the first in their family to purse post-secondary education. Pitch their stories to the media to demonstrate the importance of a college access campaign.
  • Survey several young people in your community to determine their top concerns or questions about college life and admissions. Release the survey to the media and offer spokespeople who can address these concerns.
  • Encourage a spokesperson who is an expert on college access to submit a bylined article or op-ed.
  • Book your spokesperson on local cable access shows or talk show to discuss the campaign.
  • Ask a popular radio show with teen listeners to host a segment on “Preparing for College.” Tap a college admissions counselor or a local college student to respond to questions.
  • Partner with a local media outlet and business to sponsor a scholarship contest on preparing for college. The winner could receive a one-time $1,000 scholarship or another award. 

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Date Contact: XX

Local Groups Launch College Access Campaign for Area Students

KnowHow2GO Campaign Promotes College Access for Low-Income Students

(City, State) – A coalition of local schools, community groups and government agencies announced today that it has joined the national KnowHow2GO campaign, which is working to help prepare students for college.

The campaign helps young people, particularly low-income students and those who are the first in their families to pursue higher education, to navigate the complex process of preparing for college.

“(Name of organization) is pleased to partner with KnowHow2GO to increase awareness about the resources that are available to young people interested in going to college," ________ said. “We would like to see more young people from _______, especially those from low-income backgrounds, pursue their dreams.”

(Insert information here on local event, if applicable.)

American teens from all income levels have college aspirations. Indeed, eight out of ten expect to attain a bachelor's degree or higher, according to the U.S. Department of Education. Still, low-income students are badly underrepresented on college campuses.

The KnowHow2GO campaign is a grassroots initiative to encourage young people to actively pursue post-secondary education by reaching out them, their parents and other adult influencers in their communities. The campaign will run public service advertisements about college access in multiple markets and sponsor an informative, interactive Web site, KnowHow2GO.org, to guide young people and their influencers through the college preparation process. The Web site will also link students to local resources for assistance.

To find out more, visit KnowHow2GO.org or call 1-800-433-3243. The state of (insert state) also hosts local information on the campaign at (insert Web site), featuring area-specific resources and lists of upcoming college access events. 

About KnowHow2GO

Big dreams and good grades aren't enough to get into college. KnowHow2GO is a national public service campaign designed to inform young people about the actual steps they need to take to make their college dreams a reality. The campaign includes television, radio, print, outdoor and interactive advertising. It is sponsored nationally by the American Council on Education, Lumina Foundation for Education and the Ad Council. For more information visit KnowHow2GO.org.

About (Insert local organization)
(insert short description)