As you stumble through the interrogation, you get tips on body language, eye contact, fashion sense and diction.
There may also be some instruction on grabs – short, succinct quotable quotes to suit the concentration spans of TV viewers.
At the end of the session, you may make a great performing seal. But do you have a full grasp of what the media is, its values and expectations, and, most importantly, how to ensure that the media you is the real you – saying what you really want to say about the issue or about your organisation?
At Jackson Wells, we provide a comprehensive media training program for clients.
We’re fortunate to have on staff five former journalists who reached high levels of achievement across print, radio and television. This group has a combined 200 years experience working in the media, in Australia and abroad.
And this is fortified with similar experience working in issues management and public affairs.
Tapping into that can help lift your performance in the media, whether you expect as little as a quote in the local suburban paper or you are the CEO of an ASX 200 company under the pump from Alan Kohler.
Our training sessions typically run for a day or half-day with up to six people in a group. We try to make them as informal and as much fun as possible, with plenty of time for questions.
We emphasise the importance of attitude to good media performance and how you can use controversy to your advantage.
We discuss the role of the media as public arbiter, how perception outweighs fact and what to do about it.
Long before a camera rolls, we’ve presented a focussed overview of how the media work, the three distinct types (tabloid, broadsheet and financial), and their differing news values and audiences; the importance of deadlines and what makes a story.
As former journalists, we have intimate knowledge of the day-to-day machinations of newsrooms and the importance of building good relationships with reporters.
Once you’ve learned about what makes the media tick, time is spent on discussing your objectives in dealing with the media.
Emphasis is placed on message development, understanding how to structure words for maximum impact, and the importance of rehearsal.
Finally, we impart a few tricks of the trade to help you negotiate your way through the toughest of journalistic interrogations while ensuring your messages are heard.
Then it is time for the camera, lights and mock interviews. Each performance is played back to each student and observations made and advice dispensed.
Each participant is given with a DVD of their performances and a written critique, with advice on how to improve.
It always gives me a thrill to see someone I have media trained appearing on the nightly news.
Companies that have used Jackson Wells for media training include: Mission Australia; Baxter Healthcare; Novartis; Imperial Tobacco; Exclusive Brethren Christian Fellowship; Energetics; CP2; Australian Consumers’ Association; Auspine; Benevolent Society; Boehringer Ingelheim; Commodity Warrants Australia; KBR Haliburton; University of Wollongong
