4. Handling Communications in Your Area
In this section, you will find information and suggested approaches for handling communications in urban, rural and remote areas.

When your ATR is well on its way, after you have briefed your membership and notified politicians as well as others on your list, you are ready to announce your intentions, plans and objectives. You will need the following:

• (a) Press Release: Press releases are explained in the Communications Tools section of this tool kit;
• (b) Backgrounder: A brief backgrounder accompanies the press release. Whether you are preparing the backgrounder yourself or having others do it, give it one last check for brevity. Look for Backgrounders in the Communications Tools section;
• (c) Media List: Once you are satisfied as to the content of the press release and backgrounder, the next step is the preparation of a media list. You will have to do a bit of work for this. Going through the yellow pages will not be of much help. You should compile a list of media that will provide their names, the organization they represent, what they cover for this organization, their phone number-their direct line, if possible-fax number and email address. Gathering this Editorial boards are one way of speaking personally with the editor, publisher and reporters. information will require some calling and much diplomacy. In urban areas, this list can be quite large, depending on the population. As you will no doubt be sending a large number of releases, you can save time by entering the fax numbers into the memory of your fax machine, if your machine has this capability.

Here is a tried-and-true method of getting your message across. First, phone your key media contacts and mention in brief what you will be sending them. Next, fax or e-mail the press release and backgrounder. Once this has been done, wait an appropriate amount of time-15 minutes or so-then call back to see if they have, in fact, received the material. Be prepared to answer any questions. You want only knowledgeable people working the phones who know the issues and have some authority to speak for the band.

If you are announcing a press conference in your release, be careful to not give away too much information as some media may feel they have enough and decide not to show up at your event. They will try to extract this information. You can avoid this by telling them that you are not the official spokesperson and are not at liberty to provide further information until the press conference. At that time, they will have everything they need to know. For further information on press conferences, see the Communications Tools section of this tool kit.

In the event that you are not holding a press conference, then after you have faxed or e-mailed your release and are making your confirmation call, be prepared to answer questions by having someone apart from you who is knowledgeable and can speak for the band on this issue. If the reporter has already done a quick read and is interested in pursuing further information, generally the story will receive coverage. Use the speaker phone if you have one so that your hands can be free to search documents as needed, and be sure to include your assistant in the conversation. Always let the reporter know of any other person you have in the office, and more importantly, do not crowd that office. The reporter will find background chatter both intimidating and annoying.

Throughout this conversation, keep your answers brief and to the point. No one has time to hold on for half an hour while you bring up the history of the reserve through the ages-and besides, that should have been covered already in your backgrounder.

When the call is complete, ask the reporter if he or she requires any additional material or information, and encourage them to call again if they have any other questions.

If the medium is radio or television, you may be invited for an interview either in studio or by a reporter assigned to your story. Be sure you have rehearsed your answers, as you will not have the opportunity to erase the tape or change your mind.

Do not be annoyed by some questions that the reporter may ask. Remember for the most part, the reporter probably has little or no knowledge of your subject and is trying to be as straight- forward as possible. There are both good reporters and bad-news bears out there, no matter what the story, but you should not second-guess the reporter. They are usually trying to do as accurate a job as possible, in many cases with very little information.

In smaller or rural areas, your approach will need to be a little different. If there are only a few media outlets in the area, you might make an appointment with the News Editor. Explain that you have a press release on Additions To Reserve, that you would like to deliver it personally and, if possible, you would like to discuss it with them. This could turn into an interview immediately after you arrive, so be prepared. You might wind up on television or radio or in the newspaper if a photographer is called to the interview. Therefore, dress yourself as you would when representing your community. Business dress is not necessary unless this is what you normally wear. Neat, casual attire is safe, and avoid stripes.

In remote areas, you may have to travel to the community in which large media organizations are located. If this requires an overnight trip, be sure to start your media procedure with a phone call to make an appointment with the News Editor. Tell them you are prepared to travel to their location to speak with them. Do not try to explain it over the phone. Normally, if you offer to come and see them, they will generally give you the time. Try to make all your appointments for the same day. This not only cuts travel costs, it also makes the process easier on you. You may find that by the third interview, the questions will be much the same and easier to answer, but be careful. It is very easy to relax after you have become comfortable with the process. By doing so, you might miss a few important points because you have already repeated them several times.