Media Training Worldwide

Book Review from O'Dwyer PR

Jan. 25, 2005
Media Training: A Complete Guide To
Controlling Your Image, Message, & Sound Bites
By TJ Walker
Media Training Worldwide, New York, N.Y., 1st Edition (December 2004), 176 pages, $24.95.

TJ Walker, President of New York-based Media Training Worldwide, has more than 20 years of media training experience, working with CEOs, authors, "experts" and government officials. He knows how news organizations tick.

His book is broken down into eight easy-to-read chapters: "Warming Up," "Talking Tips," "Looking 'Mahvelous' on TV," "Creating and Conveying Your Media Message," "Fielding Questions," "Crafting Sound Bites and Quotes," "Honing Your Skills," and "Learning Do's (And One Don't) From Media Figures".
Walker is amazed how people try to control media interviews by asking reporters to fax questions in advance, demanding that stories be faxed to them before they are printed or asking that a sympathetic reporter be assigned to their story.

These are all foolish requests. "You have zero control over reporters, so get over it," he wrote. Walker emphasizes that subjects do have control over what they say in an interview. It's also important to have a clear, simple, easy-to-understand, interesting message; convey media-friendly sound bits and talk to reporters in a comfortable, confident way.

One of the big problems Walker encounters with clients is that they are always saying to him that they were misquoted or their quote was taken out of context. He continually reminds them that "every quote in every newspaper, radio or TV report is taken out of context." When he asks his clients if they actually said the quote they are so upset about, they usually respond that they did, but that's not the way they meant it. Walker explains that it is not the reporter's job to make someone look good, but to get the story right. It is the subject's job to make themselves look and sound as best as they possibly can.

Have a conversation

Walker wrote that most people don't realize how they sound when they talk, and are often shocked when they hear themselves on a video recording. However, he believes most people can be coached to have a fairly presentable voice on TV or radio. A key to having a better broadcast interview is to try sound conversational, as if you were having a conversation with your best friend.

Walker emphasizes that interviewees should have a clear-cut media message in mind, one that can be stated in 30 seconds and includes three key points. He tells clients they should be prepared to answer four or five tough questions that may come up during the interview.

Walker cautions that the most important time of an interview is when it's over, and the reporter is packing up his or her notes and asks the subject if they have anything more to add. That's when people let their guard down, and ramble on about a competitor. "The interview is never over until the reporter has left your premises, or you can hear a dial tone," wrote Walker. " If you say something interesting while in a reporter's presence, it is fair game to him or her to use it in a story."

In the chapter, "Crafting Sound Bites and Quotable Quotes," Walker recommends using analogies, which can be attention-grabbing. Also, use bold, action-oriented words, express emotion while staying on message and give good examples.

In the "Learning Do's (And One Don't) From Media Figures" chapter, Walker cites the great radio news commentator Paul Harvey. He has the perfect delivery and uses the entire range of his voice for maximum effect. Harvey pauses frequently, which dramatizes his broadcast and he incorporates that pause into his signature closing stating, "Paul Harvey . . . (pause) . . . Good day!"

Walker also talks about how Ronald Reagan was such a good communicator because he reached people on personal and emotional levels. Reagan practiced his speeches for hours and hours before he spoke in front of a live audience so they would go off without a hitch.

TJ Walker has provided media training to top executives as Unilever, Bank of America, Hess, Charles Schwab and Dun and Bradstreet and is the official media trainer of the Miss Universe Organization. More information is at www.mediatrainingworldwide.com.