Media Outreach for Beginners
Garrett Adams MDLinda Lieb, MBAEd Weisbart MD
Building relationships Editorial board meetings
Op-edsLetter-to-editor
They need you, and you need
themJust regular folks, but extra busy
Timing is everything.
Keep your eye on the prize and
have fun!
Understand the media
Create the Opportunity and Enjoy It!
Enjoy Building Your Relationships
Be friendly. Attract with honey.
Be helpful and available.
Keep a media contact list handy
Focus on Local Newspapers
Editorial Board Meetings
Basics• What are
they?• Why request
one?• Timing is
key!
Prepare
• Be a sleuth• Request the
meeting• Prepare,
prepare, prepare
Act• At the meeting• Follow-up• Results
Editorial Board Meetings Get Results
• Paper dropped the “infeasible” language• PNHP-STL Op Ed
printed
Make Your Mother ProudWrite a Letter or Op Ed
• Legitimizes the author• Useful with policy makers
Make Your Mother ProudWrite a Letter or Op Ed
Inspire Yourself
• Write about what you care about
• Read your local papers and jump in
Let PNHP Inspire You
• Quote of the Day (Don McCanne)
• Promote PNHP research
“Medicare changes
equal healthcare
food stamps”
Imagine Your Patients Reading It
Make plain sense
• Active short paragraphs
• Know your paper’s word-count limits
• Headline with the author name and word count.
• 15 word tagline about the author
Don’t be dry
• Be a little controversial
• Use a little humor and irony
• Name drop• Ghost write for
someone well known locally
Know your audience
• Assume they know nothing about your topic
• Think about what you read… and then ignore that.
Push to Get Published
• Op-Ed Editor• Query of interest
first• No attachments• Obvious contact info• Call after one week,
early in week, early in day…
Who and how • One news outlet at a time.
• Disclose if doing more.
Be faithful
• Timely topic• Fresh perspective on a
local or regional issue• If national, find local
concern
Increase your odds
Keep the Dialogue AliveLetters
to the editor• Timely
response to their articles
• Comment on other letters
• 2-3 cycles
On-line forums
• Keep to the high ground
• Speak as a physician, establish credibility
Build a team
• Assigned newspapers
• Rotate comments to live within the paper’s timing rules
Each Step Leads to the Next
Next MOSP meeting: Expected 40; got 120
people.
“Groups that focus only on op-eds
do themselves a disservice. Letters are very well read,
reflect the community.”
Marjorie PrichardOp-ed page editor for the Boston Globe since 1987
Past president of the National Association of Opinion Page Editors.
Use Your Resources• Making the News, Jason Salzman,
2003• Mark Almberg, PNHP National,
Communications Director
Media Outreach for Beginners
Garrett Adams MDLinda Lieb, MBAEd Weisbart MD
Building relationships Editorial board meetings
Op-edsLetter-to-editor
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