“Brains Over Bucks.”

Handling the Media

By Jeff Slutsky and Marc Slutsky

Even if your business is not as big as Enron, you may find yourself defending your company to a reporter.   It’s critical that you handle media interviews effectively or your business’ reputation can be badly damaged.  Here are some tips we recommend to our clients: 

There is no such thing as “off the record.”  If you don’t want your comments to end up on the front page of your local newspaper, then simply don’t say it.  You may think that you’re safe in talking to a reporter, but it is his or her job to get information.    

Never say “no comment.”  When you are asked by a reporter to comment on something and you do not wish to, saying “no comment” makes you look like you have something to hide.

 Live broadcast is the safest format.  Reporters can twist your words and take things out of context.  The best way to avoid that is to be interviewed live.  If you’re being taped for editing later the editor can make you appear to say things that you didn’t.  Worse, yet, is print media because the reporter interprets what you’ve said for his or her audience.

 Don’t be afraid to ask for clarification of a question.  If you don’t understand what the reporter is getting at, it is perfectly acceptable to ask them to rephrase the question. The worse thing you can do is try to “wing it” and give an answer to something of which you’re not sure.  You can say, “I’m not sure I understand your question.”

 Know what you want to get across to the media.  Be very clear before the interview or press conference what your main message is.  Then, when reporters start asking questions that are on a different topic, you can use a transition device to guide the comments back to the topic you want to get across.

 Make eye contact.  Look at the reporter directly when answering a question.  You don’t want to give the impression that you have something to hide or you are not clear in your position.  Make sure your body language and posture indicate authority.

 Dress appropriately.  When being interviewed on camera, avoid a white shirt because it can play havoc with the cameras and skew the color.  An off white shirt or light blue works well.   Avoid wearing too much jewelry on camera.  Metal items can flare up on camera and make loud distracting noise on the microphone.

Control the ambush.  A reporter may try to catch you off guard.  Be prepared.  To gain control of the situation, stop and pause.  Make sure you’ve change the pace of the interview from a high energy, explosion to quit.  Then, when you have control, speak clearly, softly but with authority and slowly.

Never begin with “I’d just like to say . . .”   That phrase weakens any response that follows.  Instead use a power preamble like, “It’s important to realize that . . .”

Street Fighter Action Plan

1. Be prepared for media interview.
2. Say nothing you do not want printed or on the evening news.
3. Avoid cliché terms like “no comment.”   They give the impression your guilty.
4. If you don’t understand a question, ask for clarification.
5. Dress appropriately for the camera.
6. Anticipate the most embarrassing questions and be prepared to answer them.

 

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