Course Outline

Knowing what makes journalists tick is crucial to helping you put your best foot forward with them.

If you have to deal with press calls, want to generate positive news stories or just need to be prepared when your business, organisation or charity is in the media spotlight then this course is essential.

The workshop covers:

What journalists want and how the media works​:

• Deadlines, ‘churnalism’, how the media is changing
• Demands and needs of each different media sector
• What to do when approached by the media
• Introducing the press protocol, using the press office as a resource, working with partners

What makes a story and how to spot them in our daily routine:

• Ingredients for news and features
• The power of human interest stories
• Case studies
• Photographs

Mock radio bulletin:

• Groups of delegates identify positive news stories about their area of work and present them in a catchy way on a Post-It note, competing for a place in a mock radio bulletin.

Debrief on what makes a strong/weak story:

• Points for improvement and strongest stories passed on to the communications team for their consideration as a press release.