The Community 2Way Radio

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The Community 2-Way Radio
Trevor M. Lashua VLCT Senior Associate for
Advocacy and Information (and also a reformed
reporter)
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The agenda

• Getting the word out - selling budgets, using
  technology, town newsletters, and becoming a
  local public access star
• When the unexpected happens communicating with
  citizens during a crisis situation
• Dealing with Press
• Sharing Stories and Swapping Ideas
• General Q A

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Wise words
Communication leads to community, that is, to
understanding, intimacy, and mutual valuing.
-Rollo May, existential psychologist
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Using what you already do
What are some of the avenues you currently
utilize to communicate with citizens?
Town websites Public access television E-mail
listservs Town Newsletters Local media Op-eds
and letters Direct mailings Town
Report Others?
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Using the things you do
Getting voter approval for your budget is a task
you face every year. How can you use the things
you already have or do to better sell that budget
to the community?
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Selling a budget
Consider citizen involvement, through a budget
committee or series of budget hearings. Use the
budget design process as a way to inform citizens
as to how and why decisions are made. Use your
website and newsletter to solicit participants,
or simply to inform folks about activities or
meetings.
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Selling a budget
Create a fact sheet to distribute around town or
to mail. Barre Towns budget booklet is a fine,
detailed example. Use graphs or other visual
devices to convey your message. Show people how
the proposed budget would effect them, through
the impact on services, facilities, or their own
bottom line.
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Selling a budget
As kids, we always loved and learned from show
and tell. Why not show and tell your voters how
youre proposing to spend their money by taking
them on a road show?
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Selling a budget
Hit the lights your 15 minutes are here Take a
variation of your budget tour program to the
local public access airwaves, or post video on
your website (or Youtube).
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Selling a budget
Dont forget the local media write letters to
the editor, work hard to plant a few stories in
the local paper, pen a guest column for them.
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Selling a budget
For most local officials, Town Meeting day (or
the night before for many towns) is the final
chance to sell the budget. Use the opportunity
wisely by being prepared, concise, and precise.
Dont be afraid to answer a question as to why
a certain item may or may not have been
funded. Answer questions, but avoid getting
sucked into a debate or even worse - an argument.
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The Hammock approach
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The Hammock approach
You wouldnt build a hammock using a single piece
of rope, so why use only a single method to sell
your budget especially since its the
foundation for everything else you do.
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When the unexpected happens
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Crisis Communications
Successfully communicating with the public in
bad times starts with the practice of good
communication during good times. - Middlebury
Police Chief Tom Hanley
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Create a plan.
In good times, devise a communications plan for
when disaster natural, man-made, or
self-inflicted occurs.

• Chief Hanley suggests starting with three types
  of information exchange
• Internal
• Outbound
• Inbound

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Internal information exchange

• Exactly what you think it means how do the key
  players in town communicate in an emergency
  situation?
• Portable radios
• E-mail lists
• Who staffs the nerve center?

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Outbound information exchange

• This section of the communications plan should
  include
• What communications modes print media,
  television, the internet, e-mail, radio, and so
  on will you use to talk to citizens and when.
• Designate a point person to handle media
  questions.
• Consider whether or not to designate a staff
  member as the situational expert to help
  explain what happened and how it shaped the
  response.
• Adopt a sharing mindset provide what
  information you can, and if you cant provide
  information (in a personnel matter, for example),
  then cite the reasons why.

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Inbound information exchange

• Consider how you will handle incoming requests
  for information.
• Who answers phones? How do you handle a large
  volume of calls? What do you do to prepare call
  answerers?
• The same is true with e-mail and with walk-in
  business.
• A coordinated response reassures the community
  that its elected and appointed officials are in
  control of the situation.

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The wisdom of Murrow
What did Edward R. Murrow once refer to as the
oldest problem in the relations between human
beings?
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The wisdom of Murrow
what to say and how to say it.
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Dealing with the Press
In Vermont, most of the media outlets (daily
and weekly newspapers and a pair of television
stations) are what CBS newsman Charles Kuralt
once called relentlessly local. And believe
it or not, thats really a good thing for local
government.
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The 5 Ws and the one big How?

• Reporters tend to approach the world seeking
  answers to six questions
• Who?
• What?
• When?
• Why?
• Where?
• How much will it cost?

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How a typical news story is structured (a.k.a.
The Ballad of the Upside down Dorito)
Unlike an essay, which begins with an
introduction, lays out an argument in the middle,
and closes with a conclusion, a news story packs
as much into the top of a story particularly
the first 30-35 words as possible. Any
guesses why?
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A reporters here, notepad in hand
Dont lock the door and hide under your desk.
Even if the reporter is there to run a story that
you may find negative, talking with him/her/them
is a chance to present your side of the story.
Its an opportunity to communicate directly
with citizens.
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Out from under the desk, what do I do?
Follow FDRs advice, for starters Be sincere,
be brief, be seated.
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To expound on that
The Boy Scouts hit the nail on the head with
their motto Be prepared. Know what youre
talking about, and think about it in the context
of the message youre trying to convey not to
the reporter, but to the citizen reading the
article, listening to the radio, or watching your
glamorous mug on the television. If possible,
have a one-page fact sheet ready that anticipates
the reporters questions. This handy reference
sheet helps ensure that the facts get conveyed
accurately.
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Think message.
Stay focused on the message, and do not be afraid
to add emphasis to highlight to a reporter which
part(s) you want them to pick up on. The key
here is Its important to remember When
delivering the message, talk to people not at
them. Use words like us and we.
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Negative makes news.
Have you ever heard the one about the eight
minute meeting? Negative news has always
generated more energy than good news. Town Comes
in Right on Budget will never be as enticing as
Town Facing Deficit of a Gazilion
Dollars. Present your position calmly, use
facts to back you up. Avoid repeating any
negative words, especially loaded ones. That
quote will be used. Avoid he said/she said
conversations.
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The golden rule.
Treat reporters with respect. They are one of the
primary links between you and the public you
serve. Cultivate the relationship. Your
relationship with your local newspaper can become
the mirror image of your relationship with the
public. Remember the old newspaper adage
Never pick a fight with someone who buys ink by
the barrel.
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Frankie say, Relax
If you lose your cool, you are most likely to say
something you will wish you had not. The famous
(in my mind), I will NOT drink the Kool-Aid!
comment. Remember your message, and pivot away
from danger to it. If you dont know an answer,
say so, and then find out. Set up a time to speak
with the reporter so they dont report that you
blew them off.
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Be a good host.
A lot of information gathered for news stories is
garnered through telephone conversations and
e-mail responses. Dont be afraid to have a
reporter come to your office or another mutually
agreeable place. Use the pre-interview
conversation to try and get an idea where the
reporter is going with the story (this can help
you prepare). Face to face contact is less
likely to jump the rails.
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Off the record
Just dont do it. This isnt New York City or
Washington, D.C. Its Vermont, and something you
say off the record will come back around you.
Think of something else to say instead, and
stay on message and on the record.
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Shhhhhhhh
As Americans, we like things that make noise.
Lots of em. So theres a tendency for us to fill
any silence with noise of our own. If youre
with a reporter, and a silence occurs, resist the
urge to fill it. This is another time where
mistakes happen. Wait it out instead, or simply
say, Is there anything else I can do for you
today?
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Story time
Would anyone wish to share something a success
story, a challenge, a funny mistake, anything?
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Q and A
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?
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