Reporters love to quote newsmakers using analogies. These figures of speech can be quite useful in taking complicated or abstract concepts and making them more understandable in tangible, visual ways. Often colorful, humorous and opinionated, analogies can also be quite attention grabbing.
“Life is like a box of chocolates. You never know what you’re going to get.” – Forrest Gump
“Men are like a bus; there’s always another one coming along.” – Anonymous
Part of a journalist’s task is to bring new concepts alive for his or her audience. The easiest way to get people to grasp new concepts is to see the similarities to older, already understood concepts. Hence, the beauty of analogies. Reporters, however, are often reluctant to create their own analogies as they may seem to be too opinionated. However, journalists love to quote other people who are using them.
Once you have determined what your message points are, you should then brainstorm to see if there are any analogies associated with your points. If so, be sure to use them in answering a reporter during an interview.
Chances are, your analogies will be quoted.