Years ago a veteran first sergeant taught me a few valuable lessons about developing cordial relationships with the media. Hopefully, you will find them useful today as you provide leadership in your organization. These lessons are valuable and pertinent to anyone of any rank who has or might have contact with the media. This first sergeant taught his young troopers to develop good relationships with the media before the crisis hits. We made it a priority to know our local media representatives. Most of them we knew on a first name basis.
When an event of newsworthiness occurred, we were trained to contact the media rather than waiting for them to call us. If we investigated a fatal collision or some similar newsworthy event, we called the local media and gave them the information as soon as possible after things settled down a bit. We did not wait for them to call us. This was certainly beyond our expected obligations. We had no obligation to the media to do this. Is this something that perhaps you should consider doing?
Why did our first sergeant train us to carry out our jobs this way? Well, the answer is that common sense should tell us that we need to maintain favorable relations with those who buy ink by the barrel. Why? It is a fact that given the right circumstances the media can hurt and embarrass your organization, and they can destroy you, your career, or that of your fellow officers. I am not saying that with the most cordial relations possible with the media, this will not still happen. It very well could. What my first sergeant was teaching us was that it is a reality that everybody and every organization will over time screw up. It is a given. When the time comes, and it will, when you are in such a predicament, you want the relationship with the media to be one that makes it possible for you to go to them in a humble and contrite manner, with your hat in your hand and say, “Guys, we have messed up and made some terrible mistakes. We understand that you must report this, but we just ask you to be as accommodating as you possible can be as we work to right or correct the errors we have made.”
Will this always work? No. But it just might help some. In a bad and embarrassing situation that little bit of help might be just enough to avoid a lot of embarrassment and heartache for you, your fellow officers and your organization. It might just save your job! What I believe will not work is to have a combative and strained relationship with the media. If you foster this adversarial relationship with the media you can rest assured they will go after the jugular when the opportunity arises.
An example of a leader demonstrating humility, courage, and accepting responsibility after making a huge mistake is that of the Secretary of Agriculture Tom Vilsack during a televised news conference in the Sharon Sherrod debacle. If you have not seen it, go to the USDA home page for his comments, http://www.usda.gov/wps/portal/usda/usdahome After hearing Secretary Vilsack’s comments, ask yourself if you or the head of your organization have the humility and courage to step up to the plate with your hat in your hand and say “Hey I messed up, it is my fault, and I will correct this wrong, and I promise to not let it happen again. It is what leaders of character do!
Points of remember:
• Build cordial relations with the media before the crisis hits.
• Be humble and straight forward when you are in the wrong.
• Tell the truth.
• Promise to make right the wrongs that were committed.
• Do not make enemies with those who buy the ink by the barrel.
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