Like any good relationship, the way a reporter, or producer for that matter, gets along with the media people of a team or school , has to be worked on and nurtured…They can be your best friend or your worst nightmare…Treat them kindly, figure out how they can help and never, ever use their name in print or on air…EVER…
Getting along with the media relations people is a game in and of itself, just like the one you’re watching…Sure, you have a job to do but so do they and sometimes that doesn’t include giving you a straight answer to your question….As the Executive Sports Producer for more years than i care to remember (21 actually) my favorite line to the P.R. people in town was “Am i sawing off the limb behind me if i say (this)…” Whether it was a player trade rumor or an injury or simply confirming something that might have happened in the locker room, the point was, i was giving them an out…They knew I’d never use their name, quote them and in turn, they could give me information i needed to do my job…In essence, everybody wins…
Taking part in the Boston University Sports Journalism Seminar Series, Aaron Salkin of the New England Patriots pointed out, “Sometimes it might be information that’s way off…certainly if there’s misinformation, we’ll shoot it down”…and supporting that, Bill Wanless of the Pawtucket Red Sox added, “You never really want to lie because that will come back to get you…Sometimes you just have to say I don’t know…that covers a lot of bases for you…”
The Media Relations people are always in the middle, it seems…Management and the players want one thing, the reporters and fans want another…It’s the job of these team officials to keep everybody happy…It’s their jib to get the message across, your job to understand the message and make it work to your advantage…
14 Comments
Adam Silvers posted on November 28, 2010 at 8:21 pm
Before I listened to Aaron Salkin and Bill Wanless at last Wednesday’s seminar, I thought that the media relations people who work for professional sports franchises did just that, work for a professional sports franchise. I have long held the belief that when media relations people get up in front of the press, they are saying nothing more than a prepared statement in an attempt to “cover something up”.
After the seminar I realized its a little more complicated than that. While it is the sports franchise, like the Patriots, who employ media relations personnel, its not always in an attempt to cover something up. Media relations people can serve to benefit the media just as mush as the team that employs them. Like Aaron said, if he thinks a reporter is going to publish something that’s false and he gets wind of it, then he’ll try and discourage the reporter from publishing something that might hurt their reputation.
While I still think media relations people are there to serve the best interests of the team, I realize that it is essential to make friends with these people in order to be the best journalist I can be, and get the story out quickly and more importantly accurately.
If it’s one thing I’ve learned from this seminar it’s that no reporter is an Island. In order to be really good, you need a combination of the j school skills and the ability to form professional relationships. At the end of the day if you scratch my back, I’ll scratch yours.
Molly posted on November 30, 2010 at 12:05 pm
I’ve been looking forward to this seminar in particular all semester. While I don’t foresee a career in sports journalism in my future, I could easily see myself working at the collegiate or professional level, handling a team or organization’s media relations. I look at Aaron’s job and realize that he is not only responsible for protecting the reputations of his organization, its athletes and coaches, but his own on a professional level as well. Similar to Bill’s position with a smaller team that might not always be in the media spotlight, I still can see the importance of his position in maintaining a reputable relationship with media outlets, and with the players as well.
I found Aaron’s crisis manual funny at first, until I realized just how intelligent it is to carefully observe and note how other teams’ media relations are managed. Also, I found it interesting to hear about how both Bill and Aaron are adjusting with the new developments in social media, specifically Twitter. Aaron expressed his diligence when it comes to keeping up with each of the Patriots players, if they do tweet themselves. In this ever changing era of new methods for players and other fans to publish, film, print, write and tweet their own news stories, what is the purpose of having print or broadcast journalists produce the same news?
Aaron acknowledged one key point that stuck with me. He said that he is able to measure his own success through educating the athletes on how to conduct themselves while in the media’s spotlight. He knows that he’s done a good job after watching one of the athletes conduct himself in a proper and positive manner.
I think that if I am able to take one message away from this seminar, it would be that sometimes, and especially in the near future, we might doubt our own personal success. But, just as Aaron has done, when we are able to see one of our stories presented in a way that benefits the greater good, then we’ll know that we’ve completed a job well done. Sometimes the personal success we strive for may not be visible to us, but more importantly it may be seen by those around us, who listen to and read our stories, or in Aaron and Bill’s case, through the words and actions of athletes and coaches.
Jake Safane posted on December 1, 2010 at 12:01 am
Like Adam, I didn’t realize the complexity of media relations. The media relations people have to deal with the players, coaches, ownership, and media while attempting to balance positive news, negative news, and everything in between. At the end of the day, their job comes down to keeping everyone happy and allowing the necessary information to flow.
As a journalist, the media relations people may be a roadblock to getting the answers I want (Aaron said “Do you have any questions for our answers?”), but this doesn’t have to be looked at entirely as a negative. Sure it can be frustrating to not hear Brett Favre talk about Jenn Sterger, but it makes you work harder to determine “What does the public really need to know?”
Using the Favre example, I think it’s worth it to ask him about the scandal, but if the media relations people tell him to not comment on it, then that’s as far as it needs to go. If Favre doesn’t want to talk about personal issues, he doesn’t have to. So then the journalist has to realize that what the public really needs to know is whether or not the scandal affects Favre’s play. If the journalist asks the questions the right way and lets the media relations people know that the only intent is to focus on football, then the journalist has a better chance of getting an answer that actually has significance.
And as long as the journalist asks reasonable questions and doesn’t try to force a personal agenda, the media relations people would be more likely to release information. Sometimes if the media relations people know there’s a journalist who does the job well, they’ll leak information, which is beneficial to almost everyone.
Like any relationship, the one of journalist and media relations is all about give and take. By recognizing that everyone in the business has to work together, everyone can do their jobs effectively.
Francis posted on December 1, 2010 at 9:03 pm
Unfortunately I couldn’t attend this lecture but like Adam and Jake have said, I also didn’t know how much went into the job of a media relations person. I thought you just made sure everyone in the media got what they needed for that day’s story/news. I never really thought about everything else that goes into the job. You also have to make sure the organization is happy at all times and that you make sure positive news about the organization gets out.
I can only imagine how tough the job must be at the professional level when you have multi-million dollar athletes to have to cover for while also trying to please the media as well as your organization. Especially when it comes to something like the Brett Favre saga, the media wants the story while the organization and the athlete doesn’t want the bad publicity.
It must also be very tough for these people near trade deadlines, especially in baseball. You have hundreds of rumors flying around every day, the majority of which aren’t true so you have to dispel those quickly. You also most likely have all of these reporters breathing down your neck asking for the latest news every few minutes. You have to find a way to talk to these reporters while also trusting that somehow your name stays above the fray.
It’s a job that so many people don’t know about and those who do know about it overlook the importance of it. After reading about the lecture I have much more respect for the men and women who are in this capacity, especially at the professional level. It definitely does not seem to be as easy as I thought it was.
Lia Poin posted on December 1, 2010 at 10:51 pm
Like Francis I was unable to be at the seminar, but it sounds as though you guys had a lot to talk about. I think it’s important for us as journalists to understand where the media relations people stand so that we can play by the rules. In order to have respect for one another, we must understand that when the athletes that are worth millions of dollars do stupid things (which they always seem to do), it is on the media relations people to fix it and not necessarily to give us information on it. Media these days seems to be wanting to exploit these mistakes, and media relations people have to stop this from happening. As the media moves into more “sensational journalism,” media relations must work even harder to try to put the kabosh on the issues that come up.
I would have loved to hear from Aaron and Bill their advice on how to interact with media relations people. I’ve had some personal experience trying to get in touch with people and it has been very difficult. Obviously, I’m not working for a large corporation with a title that would help me get in touch with them. But I’ve found that even though they are there to help, they really make it difficult for us and not easier. In my experience, and I’m not going to name names, but one media relations employee seems to be more unhelpful than I think he should be. I’ve had players mysteriously leave practice even though I’ve scheduled an interview with them and I’ve been told wrong information plenty of times. Is this just this person or does it seem as though all media relation people hate the media? I would have wanted to ask that question. Maybe I need to work on my relationships with the media relations people, but I would like to know how they want to be approached so I can do the right thing and get my job done.
Angus Dunk posted on December 2, 2010 at 2:33 am
I honestly can’t express any amazement over what media relations directors and staff do. If they didn’t do what they did it would be pointless for a sports club to hire them in the first place. I still view media relations directors and sports information directors to simply be an extension of their respected clubs and franchises (aka they do a lot of the PR and B.S.-ing).
Bill Wanless said, “We do lie.”
And why shouldn’t they? They know the reporters aren’t signing their paychecks at the end of the day.
Access to athletes, coaches, and other sports figures only becomes trickier as the media continues to inflate the celebrity status of athletes and the public continues to stay star-stricken with Lebron, Brady, and Ovechkin. That’s all good and dandy, but it’s had a reverse or negative effect for the press. Back in the old days (1930’s/1940’s) I’m guessing getting baseball players after a game for interviews wasn’t as big of a deal as it is today and they could be conducted fairly nonchalantly. Like I said, I can’t say by any means know this, but I would assume so. Now access only becomes harder and getting interviews with players and coaches becomes a drawn out, bureaucratic process. For example, we have to go through media relations and sports information directors for what we need to report on; moreover we have to seek their approval to do things.
I think back to our seminar with Bert Breer, who recounted talking with Cowboys owner Jerry Jones and telling him he wasn’t going to do a “positive” or “nice” story about the football club. Jones didn’t stop him from doing his piece though, realizing any media coverage is better than no media coverage. Media coverage would improve for many teams if they followed Jones’ open-minded approach.
On the other hand, I did learn a lot and take away some points from the seminar. Adam described the relationship best between reporter and media relations director with “you scratch my back and I’ll scratch yours.” Building relationships with SID’s is huge if you want to have a shot at things such as filming games, getting post-game access, and gaining information leaks.
And again, one could be a reporter covering a minor league team and their relationship with a PR director could be everything he or she needs to get their stories on a day-to-day basis.
“Part of our job is [to get] as much information as possible,” said Wanless.
It was refreshing to hear this from someone in Bill’s shoes because a lot of the time I’ve noticed this hasn’t been the case. Sure, in terms of statistics and biographies, one can get plenty, but not so much in terms of post-game information. A lot of SID’s and Media Relations Directors I’ve noticed feel they’ve done enough for the media when they give out the press passes and if they can get away with saying no to you on anything else, then they will.
Bill, however seems to have a mentality that particularly makes him fit for his job. He seems to have a pretty straightforward approach: be as honest and truthful as possible, and with information that you can’t reveal simply say that. I admire him for also mentioning stories of how he takes reporters side by side and reminds them in an easy going way of what they’re permitted to do at games in terms of ethical behavior.
Although I do believe a lot of media relations directors and SID’s are “full of it,” Aaron Salkin’s integrity and commitment to his job I found very admirable.
“At any given time, someone’s mad at you,” said Salkin.
Whether it’s the team or the press, Salkin rightfully points out as a liaison and diplomat; you’re always catching flak in one form or another on the job. The conflict that faces media relations staff is the protection of the team’s reputation (as Molly pointed out) versus honesty with the press to increase popularity and public status of the club.
Aaron’s organization and dedication to the job clearly shows what it takes to survive a job such as his. Everything from categorizing information by levels to having a crisis manual (i.e. someone dies, a player becomes involved with a hooker); one has to have the versatility to meet the needs of two different groups, who have opposite interests (sports team versus the sports media). One at the very least has to appreciate the hardships and difficulties of such a profession.
Overall, while media relations directors are important allies in the sports media business they don’t necessarily go the extra mile for you. Adam’s “back scratching” quote is a good one, but I think a more accurate one to describe the relationship between reporters and SID’s is: “You scratch my back and I’m more inclined to scratch yours, but only when it conveniences me.” My main points is if media relations staff and sports reporters could be more honest and trusting of one another, it would make for a less cynical relationship between the two groups.
Seth posted on December 2, 2010 at 1:39 pm
As Adam and Jake hit on, after listening to the Aaron Salkin and Bill Wanless I have a new appreciation of the complexity that goes into the job of people in media relations. A media relations person job never ends. In describing his typical Sunday, Aaron talked about: arriving at 630AM, reading all the coverage of the team, preparing notes, accomodating the press, working with the broadcast teams, correcting/overviewing the broadcast teams, updating/highlighting stats, facilitating and preparing the athletes/coaches for the media and press conference and then preparing his own postgame notes. I may have never covered a Patriots game but I’ve covered a lot of games at lower levels and there’s no journalist or producer who has to carry out that many vital tasks throughout the course of a gameday. It’s inconceivable how many different roles and masks Aaron and Bill have to fill throughout the course of a day/week, in keeping everything functioning, and everyone happy for the most part.
I think Angus’ critique of media relations personnel is off-base. Access to athletes has become more difficult, but not because the media is making them into bigger and bigger celebrities/heroes, but because the media has become more critical and unabashed. Forty years ago Tiger Wood’s media relations people could likely have easily killed the story about his sex life, just look at how the press treated JFK’s sexual escapades. Starting in the 1960s the press and athletes began to distill the notion that the stars of the day were completely unflawed. Ball Four by Jim Bouton especially pushed this trend. In the book Bouton strips some of the shine off of Roger Maris, Whitey Ford and Mickey Mantle. These players who had for nearly a century been portrayed as Gods on the field with little focus on their efforts off the field, finally had to face the intrusive eyes of the media off the field. That’s where media relations people come into play, and why they have a right to tighten access to certain athletes. With media members willing to report on an athlete’s indisgressions and athletes’ having such a high-profile, the team needs to employ someone to train them and to run damage control.
I thought the fact that Aaron admits following and studying how other teams handle situations was extremely interesting. While journalists and broadcasters regularly observe their peers work, I never thought that the same could be said about employees of the team. Then again, Aaron and Bill and all of their staff don’t exist in bubbles. It was fascinating hearing about how Aaron dealt with tampering charges and how he accidentally released information given to him to a friend that he didn’t think was confidential. In the end, media relation personnel have the hardest jobs of all: they have an obligation to the franchise, the players/coaches, media and the fans in that order. It’s hard to owe a responsibility to so many different groups and not feel like you’ve dissapointed one group or another.
As to sports information directors at the college level, let’s be real guys. Especially those SIDS at BU. they don’t carry some of the responsibilities of media-relations people at higher levels. At BU it is clear from listening to any press conference that it is the coaches that counsel athletes in how to interact and speak with the media, rather than the SIDs. Sports Information Directors are working with four teams rather than just one like Bill and Aaron and their first responsibility is to the team/BU rather than to journalists. While they have to focus on marketing, which is where you would expect accomodating the press would come into play, BU can draw the big boys (Boston Globe, Boston Herald, local TV) to campus and they have much larger exposure. Still I’ve found that acting like I’ve been there before, checking with SIDs before I publish a controversial story and trying to create real relationships has helped me gain access to information first. Working with media-relations people here at BU is a good learning experience for future stops; yes, it can be extremely frustrating to work with SIDs but we can all learn a thing or two to use to build relationships down the line.
Katie posted on December 2, 2010 at 3:07 pm
I had been really looking forward to this seminar all semester because after interning at a news station over the summer, I realized I don’t want to be a local sports reporter. But I’m working with the New England Revolution’s communications department right now, and I can definitely picture a career in media relations. Though I’m only an intern and have a limited view into the total workings of sports PR, I could apply almost everything Aaron and Bill said to my situation.
As Aaron said, he has to have a good relationship with the media as well as the coaches and players. My boss handles most of the media dealings, but I know how much effort she puts into keeping everyone informed, sending out press releases, and arranging interviews and appearances. But she is also on great terms with the coaches and players, calling some of the them her good friends. Perhaps it’s because the Revs are much smaller than other sports teams, but those relationships are invaluable. Media relations people need to show everyone they deal with how dedicated they are to publicizing the team and everyone involved, and to make sure that both the media and team know how to respond to potentially sensitive situations. As someone mentioned above, Aaron said that some of his proudest moments are realizing he’s done a good enough job teaching players how to deal with the media that they can go into interviews on their own. So in that sense, PR is less about covering up bad news than it is about making sure that the team and media have the most beneficial relationship possible.
The most interesting thing I think I’ve heard all semester was Aaron’s story about his crisis manual. I haven’t seen anything like that in my boss’s office, but I can’t imagine anything more valuable in the arsenal of a media relations person. One of the most vital qualifications of the position is to know how to handle tough situations, so it seems there’s nothing that can prepare a PR team better than a manual that outlines how to react to any number of the worst things that could happen to a team.
On another note, when I talked to Aaron after class, he mentioned that I ask my boss the same things his best intern did–how to improve, check to make sure everything is done correctly, and he also said to ask for more responsibilities. My boss has been out of the office since that seminar, but I really look forward to putting his advice into action tomorrow. This, for me, was definitely the most valuable class so far.
Matt Goisman posted on December 2, 2010 at 3:14 pm
Despite a more nuanced understanding of Media Relations directors and their responsibilities, I still think their relationship to the press is primarily adversarial. Aaron Salkin admitted that if the Patriots want to get out a message, they are completely willing to circumvent the press in an effort to speak to the fans directly. As journalists, our job is to sift the truth from the b.s., and when a team employs someone to get around that, we can’t do our jobs. This doesn’t mean that the press and media relations people can’t get along and work together, but at the end of the day we have to remember that, just like players and coaches, these guys are not our friends.
I found especially troubling Salkin’s hypothetical example of a coach or manager checking into a rehab center. His tactic would have been to confirm it to the press, then try to convince them not to report it. An MR director would say that this is not something the fans need to know, because it doesn’t affect the team. On the surface, that might appear true. But what if that manager or coach made a decision about the team while drunk, an absolute possibility with an alcoholic? Don’t the fans have a right to know that the team they PAY MONEY to see is having its decisions made by someone under the influence?
I can absolutely relate to Seth’s complaints about college SIDs. I wrote a story for BU Today on the swim team, and I spoke with the swim team’s SID, who told me she could answer any logistic questions I might have about the upcoming meet. After arriving 30 minutes late, she in fact could not answer ANY of my questions. She knew neither the teams involved nor the history of the event. When I asked her (tactfully) what her responsibilities as an SID were, she said she mostly just types up player bios and writes recaps. My experiences with the men’s basketball team’s SID has been more productive, but I’ve still found the easiest way to get access to these players and coaches is to just look up their e-mails in the directory and contact them myself.
I’d agree with Angus that access to athletes has definitely changed, perhaps necessitating the creation of MR directors. I remember reading a 1983 Diane Shah article called “Oh No! Not Another Boring Interview with Steve Carlton.” In it, Steve Carlton (who would later enter the Hall of Fame, after a brilliant career), practically BEGS Shah to interview him, finally settling for an intermediary. 30 years later, it’s the other way around.
Jack Flagler posted on December 2, 2010 at 4:11 pm
Before this seminar, I would say that my impression of the relationship between journalists and PR workers was in line with Matt’s: you can be friendly and respectful with each other, but ultimately you’re working for two different goals and that makes you opponents.
But after hearing Aaron and Bill speak my opinion has changed a bit. To me, a journalist would put himself or herself in the best position by taking the same approach with a team’s media relations staff as they do with the players or the coaches. Carry yourself with respect and confidence, ask the tough questions when you need to ask them, but don’t go looking for the negative just because it will make a nice headline. Journalists work for the public while PR staff work for the team, so there will necessarily be times when the two sides don’t have the same goals. But I’m not sure that necessarily makes them complete enemies.
Similarly, a beat writer does not have to ignore negative stories to have a strong relationship with coaches and players. The writer just has to be honest and willing to stand up for themselves if a coach or player takes issue with his or her work.
Aaron even has a playbook to do his job – could there any clearer sign that he’s part of the team he works for?
I would have loved to hear Aaron and Bill’s comments on Derek Anderson’s tirade after his awful Monday Night performance. I’m sure that kind of meltdown is exactly what media relations people hope to avoid seeing in the team’s players. But on the other hand, the journalist was clearly pushing Anderson’s buttons for no reason other than to get him fired up. To me, the journalist sounded more like an angry Cardinals fan offended that the quarterback on his team was laughing late in an embarrassing loss than a professional.
The anecdotes from this seminar were terrific. I loved that Aaron shed some light on what it’s like for a media relations guy in full panic mode when things go south. And I’m glad Bill was honest and confirmed my suspicions about phantom “groin strain” injuries.
Joel Senick posted on December 2, 2010 at 4:47 pm
Having both a minor and major league media relations professional gave us a well rounded look at what goes into the job. Like Jake said, I didn’t realize the complexity that came with the occupation. With the amount of people they need to deal with, it seems almost impossible to keep everyone happy, but I guess that comes with the job.
I can’t imagine that it’s going to get any easier for these guys in the near future. With the social media trend taking over, players themselves can squash rumors through Twitter, which cannot be what guys like Aaron and Bill want to see. The problem is, there’s no way to police grown men or women, 24 hours a day, to make sure that they don’t post something that is going to get them into trouble. As Aaron said, educating the athletes is the key and something he is real serious about, as they need to realize that even if it’s only their opinion on a matter, it can still lead to problems (see: Darnell Dockett on Ines Sainz).
I am not sure if I agree with Matt that these guys are our adversaries. Players and coaches refuse give out information as well, making the journalist’s job harder, but I wouldn’t consider them adversaries either. I think the only difference is that the media relations official is well trained in how to deal with the press, just like some players are smart about what to say and what not to say. I wouldn’t imagine that Aaron needs to go to Tom Brady before each press conference and tell him what to say and what not to say. Sure, controversy is good press, but like Aaron said, sometimes things just don’t need to be written about (his hypothetical situation). I wouldn’t consider this adversarial, as much as a give-and-take situation. Like Prof. Shorr said in his write up, if they trust you, they are going to make your job a lot easier, instead of a pain in the backside.
Jillian posted on December 2, 2010 at 4:51 pm
Media relations is a field in the sports industry that doesn’t often get enough exposure. A media or PR director was never a position that I really considered as a possibility, mostly because I didn’t know what it entailed. It was great to have Aaron and Bill come in and speak so candidly about their experiences and responsibilities.
As Aaron said, the job of a MR director is “never redundant and never boring.” It was fascinating to learn that these people are in charge of so much more than press releases and press conferences. Both Aaron and Bill expressed that they do everything from crisis management, releasing team information, writing, managing personalities, to promotion and marketing even. And with so much constantly going on around you, it can be very valuable – like Aaron said – to keep/update notes and files and never be afraid to ask others questions or for assistance.
It seems as though being able to work with and learn from others is the backbone of the media/PR profession. They bounce between players, coaches, owners, journalists, fans, etc. And as Aaron said, it’s pretty likely that there is always going to be someone that is not happy with you, and you just have to be able to deal with it.
Because so many of the high profile sports are dominated by male athletes and coaches, I was interested to learn if many females are involved on the media relations end, and what kind of respect they receive. So, I took time after the seminar to ask Bill and Aaron their observations on this. Bill was very encouraging and said he has seen the number of woman involved in sports media and public relations climbing every year. In terms of respect Bill said that there is always one or two jokers in the clubhouse, but that overall everyone is respectful of the job the person is trying to do. Aaron even said that one of the best and most powerful people in the business that he enjoys working with is a female.
All the insight from this seminar got me thinking that I might want to more seriously consider this kind of position for the future. A lot of the qualifications and responsibilities for the job are already part of my personality and education. I want a job in sports that is going to be well rounded, versatile, constantly evolving… and this sounds like it could be just the one. Bill said that it is pretty easy these days for people to go from journalism to PR, because of writing skills and the way the media is changing. I really appreciate the way these guys have now broadened my horizons in the sports industry.
Emily posted on December 2, 2010 at 5:04 pm
I am learning more and more every day that all relationships are important. Whether they be romantic, professional, friendly, or acquaintence relationships, they all need nuture, work and communication.
I am working at a marketing and PR firm right now and need to nuture relationships everyday. As easy as it is to get a hold of people, to stalk them online and to shoot them over an email, it is also a lot harder to build relationships. People in PR and in the media get thousands of emails a day, many are deleted before they are even opened. The key is give and take, there are times when they need something from you, and there are times when you need to take time out fo your day to shoot over an email or a phone call that is not related to business. Its a job that never stops, not even when you get home or when you turn off your phone.
It’s been really interesting working on the opposite side of the media, but it has only reinforced the give and take ideals. The media needs PR just like PR needs the media. I used to think that it would be so hard to be a journalist roaming the streets for stories and ideas. That is not the case in the 2.0 world of journalism. Stories, ideas and products are being forced down every one’s throats.
That being said, majoring in journalism has definitely helped me in this job. Writing press releases and pitching to the media comes easily because you know what they want. Shoots and photo always go smoothly because you are on the same page as the media in terms of the story and in terms of what looks good on camera.
The hard part, is standing our ground. It comes with any and all jobs, but is especially hard when you need to keep both of your clients and the media happy. I’ve found that the only way to do this is to be honest. I’m going to start having to use that “saw-your-arm-off-thing.”
Laura posted on December 2, 2010 at 5:27 pm
The topic of media relations was one of the most informative seminars we had this semester. It is definitely the seminar I knew the least about going into it. I did not realize how complex a job in media relations could be. I’ve always thought media relations was more of a cookie cutter job that was the same anywhere you worked. Aaron made it very clear that is not the case though.
Although his crisis manual may be all encompassing, it is definitely different based on the players and organization rather than the circumstances. I think that coaches have a bigger impact on athletes’ actions on both a college-level and a professional level than a media relations person does. In the end, it is more likely a coach gets a player traded or cut than a media relations person. The most successful media relations direct can get through to players the way a coach does, I see Aaron’s manual as a coach’s playbook.
The most difficult part seemed to keep everyone happy; being employed by a team, while still giving the public what they want. To an extent it seems that a media relations person is a sort of double agent. Although media is in their title, the media is not who their loyalty is, because it is that organization that is signing their paychecks. Differentiating between what you know and what you can actually release to the public seems to be a difficult balancing act.
The main point I left with regarding media relations from both Bill and Aaron was less is more. Just because you may have all the information journalists and fans are asking for you have to use that to your advantage, only giving out the bare minimum. I think we can see this right now with the Cam Newton situation, as Auburn has silenced him. Auburn and Newton both know the facts, but if you give the media an inch they will take a mile and can turn out a huge story with minimal information or even allegations. Aaron mentioned answering with “tell me what you know and I’ll tell you what’s true” when dealing with controversial questions. Truly good media relations people know how to use the information they have and how to make journalists think they’re getting everything they want without having given any “secrets” away. Trust is what ties all of those relationships together though. More than journalists, the media relations people have trust that players and coaches are telling them the truth, because it is the media relations person’s job on the line if journalists find out the information is false.
Lastly, I’ve also always thought of team websites as being completely bias and maybe even run by the media relations people. Because of that I thought it was interesting that PR releases are different than the articles written on the sites. I give a lot of credit to media relations people to get the information they want out to their people first before journalists, so that the story is broken in a more positive light.