Intelligent speculation

I spoke with a new faculty member and discussed media, and I used a phrase that's been helpful to me: Intelligent speculation.

Something that made my job easier was the collapse of Enron. I don't mean to sound flip, because many people suffered by that, but it helped me in this sense: the media knew that Enron was broke, but aside from that, nobody knew anything. Yet the media needed to report on this story. So, instead of hard analysis, they looked for intelligent speculation. Here, the experts speculated on the causes and affects of the collapse; later, when hard facts and details emerged, then the experts could comment on those items.

But intelligent speculation goes much further than that: as this faculty member pointed out, there are often no answers to questions, so in lieu of an answer, an expert's intelligent speculation can fill in the gaps and keep the public informed (to a degree).

If there's one field where intelligent speculation thrives, it's politics. Primary season ends in May, and the elections are in November. In addition to the day-to-day happening, readers/viewers want to know who'll win; there's no answer to that, so intelligent speculation is plied.

This isn't to say that "IS" can be used in every case; often experts are asked for their opinions ("Is this a good policy" or "will this boost the economy" or "will this trade make the Phillies a contender"), but again, those opinions are based on their expertise.

This is the life I have chosen

When I started this blog I had two goals: to keep it positive and educate people about the media business: I'm going to do the later but not the former in this post.

A married couple, who met at La Salle's foodcourt, were profiled today in a regional newspaper. It was a long, long story, but one fact was missing: how they met! If you write a story about a married pair, you have to -- MUST -- tell the reader how and where they met. This is Reporting 101 or Editing 101. Now, it's possible that the writer included this in their draft of the story and it was edited out for space reasons, but still, someone at some point should have read the story and asked, "Hey, how did these two meet?"

Too often the media will showcase a faculty member, student or alum and not identify them as being connected to La Salle. Here's why it hurts: if it weren't for me, the media would have never made contact with the La Salle person. Sure, the media might have several sources in a story, and other college PR departments have suggested sources. But today's episode really hurts because:

The story would not have existed without me!

I called an editor at the paper who was unaware of this couple. They assigned a freelance writer to do the article. The writer got the story because the editor knew about the couple. I'm not asking for a kickback, because this writer will be paid, but my currency is "La Salle" and they're getting a check in the mail because of my effort. I was all set to contact the parties involved and write, Hey, did any of you go to journalism school or "common sense 101," but as a wise friend told me, never do anything when you're angry. So, the writer and editor will not hear from me, even though I made the editor's job a little easier by alerting them to a good story and the writer who's getting paid for their efforts.

I keep reminding myself of a saying from a movie; it might have come from "The Godfather," but it was defiinitely a gangster pic:

"This is the life I have chosen."

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.

"I'll call them...."

"I'll give them a call...."

When I email the media info about a faculty member who could be a good source for their stories, I sometimes hear back from them with a note that says they'll call the professor. Well, this is like dating: you wait for that call...and wait, and wait....sometimes they call, sometimes they don't. Four reporters have told me this past week that they'll call La Salle faculty. Out of the four, well, if one follows up, that's ok; two is great; three is phenomenal and if four call back I'll retire. Still, even if they call the faculty member that's no guarantee the faculty member's comments will be used. When that happens I say to myself, if you fail 2/3 times in baseball, you're in the hall of fame.

You never know where you'll find a good story

Riding in the shuttle bus one day I chatted with Carla Johnson, a senior who was about 50 years old. She told me she had gone back to school after her children were grown, and planned to volunteer with AmeriCorprs for a year after graduation. I made a note to do something about her at graduation. Well, Carla and I exchanged a few emails about her story, but when I asked her why she wanted to volunteer, she told me it was to honor those who had helped, including her fiance, Roland, who had been retired but started working again to Carla wouldn't have to to work while completing her degree. That last bit of info put Carla's story in the "A" category. I sent her info to Phila. Inquirer columnist Annette John-Hall, who immediately wrote about them. Here's a link to her column:

http://www.philly.com/inquirer/columnists/20100615_Annette_John-Hall__Couple_has_a_love_that_never_retires.html#axzz0qx9ywtLC

I was lucky I took the shuttle that day!

Press still has some power

A few weeks ago Philadelphia Daily News columnist Ronnie Polaneczky Polaneczky wrote about Mareeda Perry, a La Salle employee who has overcome much in her 24 years to earn her BA from the University. Since then, Mareeda has received many letters and emails from people who say they found inspiration for themselves through her story; one person offered to help her navigate the world of grants and fellowships to finance her graduate studies; there were even some job offers!

This all started back in March when I sent a campus-wide email asking folks for interesting and unusual graduation stories. Joan Ulmer, who works with Mareeda in the Nonprofit Center, sent me some info and the rest took care of itself. This proves that you never know where a good story will come from.