Any event that causes a disruption at your workplace can be news worthy and attract the attention of the media.

Being unprepared to manage inquiries is a common misstep made by many organizations. Follow these simple rules to avoid problems with the media.

• Know to whom you are talking. There are many new types of media outlets and any one of them might decide to make your organization an area of focus. Bloggers, podcasters, writers, Twitter or Facebook activities – the list of ‘new media’ journalists is long and continues to grow. If someone contact your organization, begin by gathering some information on the reason for their interest. Explain that as a member of the media they can be put on a distribution list of those receiving ongoing information about the situation.
• Establish some ground rules. Explain to the media person who the spokespersons are for the organization and make the point that they are likely to have the most up-to-date and complete information. Provide multiple contact points such as cell phone numbers, office extensions, and email address. Ask that the person use these contact points since the will help ensure that they get a quick and accurate response to their inquiries.
• Orient Your Staff. Long before a problem develops, train your staff on how to deal with inquiries from the media. Suggest that rather than responding “No Comment”, they instead direct the person to one of the authorized spokespersons. Counsel that they should not give out personal information such as the home address of anyone involved in the incident. Point out that only certain people should participate in an interview and that this helps ensure that the media gets accurate and complete information. Stopping rumors before they start is everyone’s job and that it helps keep the organization healthy and viable.

If the incident is sizable, it might be best to pro-actively contact key members of the media. Take time to prepare a statement for use in a press release or at a press conference/interview that follows the seven rules of a media briefing:

1. Start by expressing genuine regret and concern for those affected by the incident.
2. Simply and clearly state what happened, without exaggeration.
3. State the organization’s commitment to getting to the root cause of the incident.
4. Discuss in a factual manner the implications of the event to the operations, staff, and clients.
5. Indicate management’s position on the long-term impact of the event on the organization (if there are any).
6. Explain when, where, and how they should contact a spokesperson with questions.
7. Schedule a time for a follow up release of information.

Given that a lot of information gets exchanged over the web, consider the following:

• Put a tracking system in place that lists all inquiries including the time it arrived, how it arrives (phone calls, email, fax), and how to respond.
• Whenever possible, ask if the reporter has a deadline.
• Make an effort to return inquires in the order they were placed but no longer than one working day unless a shorter deadline is indicated.

While many people are enamored by the thought of being the focus of media attention, the key is to make sure that the media is given facts, not opinions.