Choice of Media to Communicate the News.

When you are looking to communicate the news to the media, you must assess to the various choice of media. whether your story is suitable for coverage by more than one medium. You need to analyze the need and the extent of the media situation.

If it is of national importance or image building, you must look for a multi-media approach to reach the public. If the news is of particular interest, you can limit it to one or two media.

However, the PR efforts should always be directed towards projecting the organization from a favorable perspective.

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Types of Choice of Media to Communicate the News:

Print Media:

In print media, the newspaper is an essential medium that reaches the largest number of people. We have already discussed the newspaper. Here we will discuss magazine, another important print medium.

Magazines are an excellent medium for projecting organizational policies and programs elaborately. For coverage in a magazine, you have to get in touch with the editor, correspondent, and writers of some important magazines.

You require sound judgment, illustrative perception, accurate information, and extensive research material to get coverage in the magazine.

You can approach the editor with a feature idea for approval. And, you can arrange a press party which is conducive to good media relations.

Print media also includes house journals, which can be meant for internal and external publics. House journals can communicate effectively with employees, shareholders, dealers, agents, and consumers.

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Electronic Media:

Radio and television have become the most important and popular medium of mass communication even as people are still oriented towards print media for information. The broadcast media has spread rapidly.

Radio is an effective medium for communication and reaching the public. The radio uses words and sounds effective, giving its listeners a direct personal touch and a sense of participation.

The PR person can issue press releases to get coverage by radio.

Press releases written for radio should comprise meticulous and precise details about the subjects:

The release should be written in a conversational style. It should have accurate and factual information, an objective and crisp report with emphasis on the theme. It should not have too many figures and statistics.

To get coverage in radio programs is very tough. You have to cultivate the MR media team, which comprises Programme Manager, Writers, News Manager, Directors, Producers, and Announcers.

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Motion Picture:

Film can lend a crucial dimension to your organization’s image. Some of the distinct qualities of motion pictures are a high degree of media involvement and a better reflection of activity.

As a PR person, you can advise your organization on film making. The people involved in film making include the producer, director, screenplay writer, cameraman, editor, sound recordist, and other crew members.

For making a film, you have to contact a professional producer. You have to sign a contract with him. After that, get in touch with a screenplay writer.

After the management approved the script, a director is consulted, responsible for putting the script into a film form.

You have to brief all the people involved in the objectives. The film must be oriented towards projecting a fine image of the organization.

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In film-making, you also have to take care of:

• Concept — which must be clear,
• Treatment which should be conducive to your organization, and
• Image scenario which must be impressive.

During the production of the film, you have to take the services of many people. You have to coordinate with all to make it a success. Once the film is complete, ensure that it is properly edited.

Distribution: The distribution of the film to the target audience is also very important. You must publicize the film to achieve the objective.

Slide Films:

Slides are less dramatic and inexpensive means of communication. Slides are the continuous strip of film on which frames are presented in a fixed sequence. A slide film can be with Or without a soundtrack.

You can expand or minimize any important information while passing it on to the media or the public.

Besides the audio-visual mediums, there are some visual aids that lend credibility to the print medium.

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Photographs:

Photographs are an important visual medium. They represent the actual happening in a more emphatic manner. They also have an immediate impact on the people.

A PR person must ensure that a good photograph accompanies your news story in the press.

You must also identify the various types of photos like news photos, feature photos, candid shots, action shots, etc.

To get good photographs, you should try and establish links with many photo-journalists, private photographers, Photo-agencies, and photo libraries.