Dealing with the Media

There is often a strong deviation between what scientists and journalists consider “interesting” news. There is also a strong difference between the two in terms of working and writing styles. This often leads to misunderstandings and even incorrect media reports. Even though the university’s press office functions as a mediator between journalists and scientists, the colleagues from the press office depend on cooperation with the scientists. This workshop will convey the basics of the media’s laws and rules in order to make the contact between scientists and journalists more effective. It also aims at better understanding the media’s perspective, looking at your own research with a “public eye” and thus helping you to estimate what aspects of your research might be of interest to a broader public.

Topics

• What is “news” to the media? What is “interesting” to the media?
• When is it worth publishing a press release? When is it absolutely necessary?
• Differences between journalistic and scientific working and writing styles
• What does the press office need and when in order to write a good press release?
• How should academics prepare for interviews?
• What to consider when giving an interview
• What rights does the academic have with regard to the journalist’s article?
• How to deal with “difficult” journalists?
• How to react when asked for a statement in a situation of crisis?

Trainer: Thomas Richter, Romas Bielke
Course dates: to be announced
Duration: ½ day (4 work units)
Place: Seminar room, Von-Siebold-Str. 4
Participants (min-max): 6-14
Costs: 12,50 €