Jill Osborn - Accessing the Media: How to Get Good Press

Copyright 2018 by Jill Osborn

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Print ISBN: 978-1-5107-3025-0

Ebook ISBN: 978-1-5107-3026-7

Printed in the United States of America

For my resilient mom and brilliant writer, Debra Hart Nelson. So the whole world knows none of this would be possible if it wasnt for you.

by Dr. Rob Peters

W orking with the media may look different today than it did in generations past, but the tension in these relationships is nothing new.

Irishman Edmund Burke won the hearts of Americans for his support of the American Revolution. Years later, he, was asked to give the eulogy for Charles James Fox, the prominent British Whig statesman and the former British Foreign Minister. Both men had lived their lives in the public eye and had been brutalized by the press throughout their careers. There was a kinship there because of their commonalities with the media.

As the pastor of a large church, I often receive requests for quotes, comments, or a story from the media. Much like Edmund Burke, my first two decades of dealing with the press were filled with disappointment in how many of those interactions went. This frustration came to a head on November 23, 2007. The Wall Street Journal asked to interview me for an article about giving to religious charities. The interview covered a range of topics. My comments were supportive of the Christian discipline called tithing. I was supportive of the concept of giving toward charitable organizations. Yet, when the article appeared that day in the Journal, the title given to the article was, The Backlash against Tithing.

I was never given any indication the article was going to be written in a negative tone. Obviously, I learned a significant lesson that day, and I began to reconsider how I interacted with the press. I began to lay down ground rules when dealing with the media. For example, I now say, If you dont use my entire quote, you are not free to use my quote at all. These are difficult lessons to learn, and even more difficult to practice in the moment of an interview.

We live in a day when leadership and communications are fraught with hazards. With social media providing access for everyone to be a reporter, a commentator, and an expert, the fields are white unto harvest, with dangers and difficulty when it comes to communicating publicly on almost any topic. Every public figure needs to understand how to navigate these waters. Every person who has a message they are seeking to share needs to know how to engage the media.

In her book Accessing the Media, Jill Osborn describes how to engage the media and make the most of every opportunity. She explains how to get your message out through various media and keep it focused to avoid dilution. Detailing what to do before, during, and after the event, and providing a guide for leaders in how to engage and communicate with the press, Osborn masterfully describes what is required to get the most out of your time with the press. Having been on both sides of the microphone and camera, Osborn shares her expertise, experience, and insights with readers as they seek to stay on message and engage the media.

I commend this book to you, confident that you will become better equipped to navigate this challenging, yet necessary, dynamic.

Dr. Rob Peters is Senior Pastor of Calvary Baptist Church in Winston-Salem, North Carolina. He is the founder of Corpus, a ministry to revitalize Americas churches. Dr. Peters is also author of the ReFocus process to assist churches in rediscovering their purpose. He has written three books, Evangel-lies, Lets Chat, and The Dangerous Gift. Dr. Peters speaks internationally to evangelical Christians through Calvarys Global Missions Initiative.

M y sincere gratitude to my parents, Debra and Brett Nelson, for their support and for teaching me that anything was possible. Thank you to my husband, Justin, who is my rock. To my three angelic babies, Jaxson, Olliana, and Oakleeyou three are the best thing I will ever achieve. Id like to sing praises to my sister, Mandy Haggerson, whose strength and wisdom I respect tremendously. To my brother, Nick, who shares my affinity for youthful games. To Nina and Susie, you all are full of strength. I love you all with every ounce of my heart.

Thank you to Rebecca Bugger, for her brilliance and insight. A special thank you to Joe Muster for taking this book to the next level. Im so grateful to Phyllis Swanson for your love and expertise. To Dwight Sparks, who encouraged me to swing for the fences. Thank you to Dr. Rob Peters, Jeff Gravley, Aaron Berlin, Jim Williams, Congressman Richard Hudson, Mayor Pro Tem Michelle Barson, and Dan Mastro, for all the wisdom and words. Gretchen Carlson, our modern-day Susan B. Anthonythank you for encouraging women like myself. Thank you to my editor, Joseph Craig, for his powerful editorial eye. Thank you to Dr. Gary Chapman for your time and counsel. Thank you to Cameron Kent for your friendship and instruction. Also, thank you to Gary W. Moore who helped me pave the way. I am indebted to Jim Lentz, and Tom and Barbara Mahannah, who have been there for my family. Thank you to John Morrow for your assistance. Thank you to Adam Shepherd and author Ashley Papa, who has been a sounding board in my professional and personal life. Thank you to my Oak Valley Housewives, my girlfriends in Clemmons, and especially Whitney Jellar, Sarah Oxford, Whitney Ewing, and Catherine Spross. For the morning pep talks and java, my gratitude to those at Starbucks in Clemmons, North Carolina. Thank you to Sean Dalton and Kimrey Rhinehardt, for your mentoring throughout the years. Thanks also to those not mentioned above. So many of you have impacted my life and my writing that I could go on saying for the rest of my life, Thank you to...

Finally, thank you to my fellow journalists who verify their sources, write honest reports, and sometimes risk their lives.

The medias the most powerful entity on earth. They have the power to make the innocent guilty and to make the guilty innocent, and thats power. Because they control the minds of the masses