The Alligator and the River

I have a vague memory/recollection about how a female alligator gives birth to many babies, and has to get them to a river very quickly; well, with all the dangers that lurk in the wilds, if 2 or 3 babies get to the water, that's a good number. Why the alligators don't birth at the river is a mystery, but the point I'm trying to make here is that if several La Salle stories are distributed and only one, two or three make it, then, well, we're as good as the alligators.

It could also illustrate how many steps this process takes: first, I have to make contact with the media; then they have to like what I give them; when they write their story or conduct a tv/radio interview, they have to include the La Salle mention in their content; then that person turns over the material to an editor or producer, who for a variety of reasons (space, time available for the broadcast, etc) could decide to trim the story and the La Salle reference, and then finally, the story has to be in the media: some stories are written but then are rejected when completed again for a variety of reasons. So, like those baby alligators, getting to the river (or airwaves) the La Salle material has challenges to overcome....

So far, batting .500

In my last post I wrote that four reporters said they would call La Salle faculty members to use as sources in their stories. Well, so far, one called and one didn't, so I'm batting .500. Even though some media members seek sources nationwide, they'll often use "hometown" sources, such as a reporter in Cleveland quoting a Case Western professor or a Wilmington (DE) News-Journal quoting someone from the University of Delaware. But, reporters will also like to use out-of-area sources to add new insights or seek a roundup of ideas from around the country.

So why would a reporter tell me they'll call a La Salle professor and then not follow up? If I knew the answer to that, I'd keep it to myself and get La Salle mentions around the world. Just kidding. Sometimes another source comes along that bumps the La Salle prof, or they try to reach the prof, can't, and because of deadline pressures will use someone else. Like all human endeavors this is a subjective process, but if a professor isn't called today, the media beast needs constant feeding and opportunities happen every day.