James,
Your advice is certainly the "safest". There is no shortage of reasons to be wary of talking to the press. However, one of the shared goals many of us in this organization have is to help promote engineering and seize opportunities to bring the message of who we are and what we do to the general public. Face-time on the media *could* be a good way to accomplish that.
We've had a couple decent earthquakes here in Anchorage over the years, one in the category of "quite decent" (we actually just had a small quake - as I started typing this response - that I think might still be considered an aftershock from our big one). Following our 2 most recent larger events, local press contacted my firm to provide interviews regarding building response to earthquakes, and we obliged. I did the interview for the latter. I think it was a positive experience and allowed me to share some of the technical reasons that our buildings performed very well in the moderate-strong earthquake, whereas the same size earthquake in other parts of the world sometimes yields devastating results. I was happy with the end result.
A couple of traps and tips I will share from my experience in speaking with the press, and some of these may be repeats from above:
1. Take the time to go over the substance of the interview with the interviewer
before the camera is rolling. Do not do a cold interview, where he/she asks you questions for which you are not prepared, and you get to work out your responses on film. Aside from providing some structure to the interview and making your responses more concise and polished, it will also help stymie any "cherry picking" of your comments that may not be 100% on point. If you ramble on in response to a question, you give them lots of material to cut and paste into an "opinion" that may end up pretty far from your intended target. It also gives you the chance to get to know your interviewer a little and ultimately decide if you want to / should go through with it.
2. Try to gain an understanding of the story the interviewer is trying to tell, and make sure you either agree with it or that you can revise the story and come to an understanding of what is correct. Do not proceed with the interview if you don't feel that you and the interview agree on the substance of the story. They have ultimate control over what portions of your commentary they can include or leave out, and they will only use snippets of what you say that support their narrative. Last thing you want to do is provide backing for something with which you disagree.
3. Bear in mind the limits of your own knowledge on a subject. An "expert opinion" is still just an opinion. Do NOT make any assumptions or judgments on camera unless you are really in a position to do so. If you wouldn't put it on letterhead and stamp it, you probably shouldn't say it on Channel 2. This is especially true when asked to comment on the performance of another design professional or contractor or in the wake of some type of disaster or apparent shortcoming of an engineered system/building/etc.
4. Don't be afraid to sprinkle in some personality! The public hangs onto this perception of engineers as stuffy and unsociable. It's not true, so don't give it to them. Just because you are putting highly technical themes into lay-person terms doesn't mean you can't smile while doing it ;) If all else fails, try a little liquid courage. (This is a joke. .... maybe.)
5. Formal media training if you have the opportunity. Everybody thinks they're awesome at everything until they actually get training and realize they were doing it all wrong.
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Gregory Latreille P.E., M.ASCE
Engineer
Anchorage AK
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Original Message:
Sent: 04-26-2021 01:50 PM
From: James Foley
Subject: Speaking to the Media
Speaking to the Media - DO NOT - EVER!
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James Foley P.E., F.ASCE
Consultant
James W Foley, P.E.
Saratoga CA
Original Message:
Sent: 03-30-2021 07:59 AM
From: Chad Morrison
Subject: Speaking to the Media
Whether it is a notable project or recent publication, engineers might find themselves engaging with the media to deliver a message to the public. I received a media inquiry on the RI Infrastructure Report Card last week. The producer admittedly had only skimmed the report card and needed some guidance on its contents. The producer was forceful in provoking an opinion from myself and colleague from which we had to refrain from providing. It was a peak into the quick pace world of news.
What is your experience with speaking to the media? Were they hostile or friendly? How did you handle it? Did you feel well prepared or caught off guard?
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Chad Morrison P.E., M.ASCE
Professional Engineer
Greenville RI
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