Emergency newswriting

1
Emergency newswriting

• The PIO as conduit
• Get out front ASAP
• Whats the situation?
• Key messages
• Different forms for different purposes

2
Purpose

• To inform
• To direct action
• To do both
• Side benefit Your
  agencys visibility to, and credibility
  with, the public

3
Shaping information

• Content
• Formatting
• Forms
• Resources

4
Resources

• Oak Ridge pocket guide
• Associated Press (AP) Stylebook
• The medias language guide
• Spelling, capitalization, punctuation,
  abbreviation and other usage
• Also Internet guidelines, media law,
  proofreaders marks

5
Basic content

• Accurate
• Timely
• Detailed, concise and clear
• Quotes attributed by name
• and title

6
Content

• Lead tells who, what, when, where, why and how
  (5Ws1H)
• Crisis Response Message Triangle
• Write newspaper-style from your organizations
  perspective

7
Content

• Simple, clear language
• Short sentences, one thought
• Dont end with participial phrase
• Active verbs
• Make antecedents plain
• Avoid abbreviations and acronyms

8
Content

• Be precise
• Destroyed vs. completely destroyed
• Escape vs. miraculous escape
• Frequently vs. always
• Died vs. passed away
• Critically injured vs. not expected to live
• Said vs. stated
• Dead on arrival vs. pronounced
• Left vs. exited
• History vs. past history

9
Shaping your content

• Use the Inverted Pyramid

Crucial Information
Lead Sentence
Prioritize succeeding
sentences
Less
Important
Write in declining
order of importance
10
Formatting the page

• Double-space--yes/no?
• Make margins wide as possible
• Margins used by editors to mark up
• Use one side of 8-1/2 x 11 paper
• Limit length
• Longer releases sometimes tossed and
  your message is lost

11
Top of the page

• Letterhead
• Logo, name of organization, address
• Time of release
• FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
• RELEASE AT time/date
• Date (/time, if needed)
• Contact
• Name, title, phone number

Top of Page
12
Rest of the page

• Headline
• Subject of release, all caps
• Dateline (City, State)
• Body of copy
• Ending news releases
• centered at bottom
• Header for second page

Rest of Page
13
Forms of information

• News release
• First news release
• Fact sheet
• Backgrounder
• Talking points
• Internet

14
News release

• Most common written PIO tool
• Formally structured
• One to two pages
• AP style suited for media use

15
First news release

• A few sentences released ASAP
• First use of Crisis Response Message Triangle
• Indicates your agency is
• Responding quickly
• Managing incident effectively
• Establishes PIO contact for media

16
Fact sheet

• Bulleted sentences or phrases
• May include
• Straight facts, statistics
• Incident chronology
• What to do before, during, after
• Formal statements
• Other information
• Quick reference to incident information
• Good when demand for info high

17
Backgrounder

• Detailed narrative about a program, hazard, your
  agency, etc.
• Backgrounder about your agency
• Structure
• Leadership
• Preparedness and capabilities
• Historical, statistical, chronological
• Good for new reporters and reporters doing
  in-depth stories

18
Talking points

• Use bullet points
• Use sentences/phrases of fact
• Use as notes to impart critical information
• Most effective in news conferences

19
Writing for the Internet

• Readers
• Writing for readers
• The basics of strong Web writing

20
How people read the Web

• Readers look at text first
• Readers focus on headlines, news briefs and
  captions
• Readers gloss over pictures, especially graphics
• Most readers look for something specific
• Source The Pointers Institutes Eye Track Study,
  2000

21
Writing for Web readers

• Write straightforward, efficient headlines
• Use bullets
• Bold and highlight key facts
• Solid, concise writing is essential
• Use high-impact photos, tightly cropped
• Use interactive graphics that require reader
  participation

22
Strong Web writing

• Use the inverted pyramid
• Use bullets and lists that can be easily scanned
• One idea per paragraph
• Half the word count of printed information

23
Strong Web writing, contd

• Use hypertext to organize material
• Use sources and citations for research, and
  quoted material to enhance credibility
• Use humor with caution
• Avoid promotional, marketese-type language

24
Follow up

• Check to see your message has reached the
  intended audience
• Monitor the media for
• accuracy
• correct context

25
Assignment

• Web posting and news release
• Decide who you are
• Time of release noted on scenario or fact sheet
• Handwritten or computed
• Due tomorrow morning
• Questions