2-02-04
((Editors note: This is from a speech I gave to people interested
in running for public office. They thought it was good enough to
pass along to you. Please note that the media I am referring to are
members of the “local” media. I don’t have much hope for the folks
at the national level))
Why on earth are you doing this to yourself? Do you know what you
are getting into? Please, don’t tell me it’s for the money because
for most offices it doesn’t amount to much. You’re doing it for the
sense of power. Have you ever heard a car trying to turn over when
the battery is dead? That’s about as much power as most elected
officials wield unless they align themselves with old established
good ol’ boys OR good ol’ girls networks. Yes, Florida Lt. Governor
Tony Jennings, they do exist.
So, you are running because you think you can change the world
and make it better? The last time one man changed the world was a
guy named Jesus. And need I remind you He is also God and He had to
die first!
You had better be running because you truly want to be a public
servant. That’s what the public expects and that’s what the public
deserves. Admittedly, I have a hard time imagining the President or
our Senators and Congressmen and women as servants, when many of
them live and operate in one of the most expensive cities in the US,
flying here and there, overseeing powerful hearings and
investigations. Did you know that all but 4 of our Senators are
millionaires and 26 of them are 10-million millionaires, and 8 are
100-million millionaires or more? Some servant, huh! I digress!
I hope you are running because you see some wrongs that need to
be righted. I hope you are running because you have a way of saying
and doing things that maybe the silent majority of those who support
you don’t. I hope you are running because you believe your core
values are honed and refined to the point they can withstand the
pressure of the apathetic or the disinterested, who, through their
lack of caring actually work to tear down the fabric of laws and
ordinances that hold this thing called society together. I hope you
are running because your skin is thick enough to glance the blows of
idiots who think they always know better. And finally, I hope you
are running because you’ve spent a few minutes in the solitude of
the presence of the Almighty to listen to His voice urging you to do
more than just complain. If you can answer yes to all of the above
than you are ready for some advice about the TV media.
TV is a fickle mistress! She can make you look good and confident
and informed or wrinkled and shaken and ignorant. That typical
15-second sound bite can be your best friend or it can turn around
and bite you hard. Yet, in spite of what you may believe TV by
itself will not make or break your campaign. How you respond to it
and use it is the key!
And now, without embarrassing myself further… or is it farther.
Oh bother…. here are my suggestions, or rules, or whatever:
The TV news organizations are your friends, not your enemies.
We have first names and families and live in this community and
would like to keep our jobs as long as possible. We have no agenda
and there is no conspiracy out of New York making us do anything. We
don’t want to make you look bad. We want to get it right.
The camera can be your friend or your enemy.
That’s my polite way of saying if you know you are going to be on
TV look the part. Men should wear a nice centered tie and a white or
blue dress shirt. Bring a handkerchief along and make sure you are
NOT dripping sweat. Remember how bad Nixon looked against Kennedy in
that famous debate? Women should make sure their blouses don’t
plunge and their jackets aren’t too tight. Red is a great color for
anyone. Don’t look at the camera unless you are told to do so by the
reporter. And never, ever grab for the reporters microphone.
Develop relationships with reporters and other TV folks.
That doesn’t mean you can back slap and joke around all the time,
but if you get to know a reporter by name and develop a trusting
relationship you are more likely to get favorable coverage. Once you
are elected, don’t be afraid to stop by every once in a while and
talk to the folks behind the scenes. They love that stuff.
Don’t B.S. assignment editors or reporters.
If you’ve got a great story or want some coverage be honest about
its value. That doesn’t mean you can’t try to sell them on giving
you some coverage. It just means be honest about the impact of what
you are going to say or are going to propose. And don’t take “No” as
a personal insult!
Don’t read from your notes but have notes available for the
reporters.
The worst thing you can do is try to read from a script or a
piece of paper on your lap. The camera wants to see a knowledgeable
candidate who can explain his or her views from memory and from the
heart. Make sure you have a short one-page press release with all
the facts and figures you want to get in your story. Let the
reporter decide which facts are best to use. Underline the important
facts just in case the reporter is having a hard time deciding which
ones to use.
Know more about your subject than the reporter
That should be so basic but I can’t tell you how many times I’ve
interviewed politicians and have known more about the subject than
they do. That’s embarrassing.
Keep your answers short and to the point and on subject.
The average political sound bite used on TV is between 13 and 17
seconds. If you blab on and on your bites will likely be cut and
could be taken out of context. And, it’s all right to say, “I really
don’t know” or “ I don’t have an answer for that”. But please, don’t
try to sidestep a question because that only makes a reporter more
determined to get the answer.
Be grateful for any airtime
Time on TV is precious, very precious and expensive. Be thankful
when you get on the air. You are competing with sports, and weather,
and the President and dozens of other stories. A note to thank a
reporter for an interview is something that is seldom forgotten.
Make yourself available
When a TV editor or reporter calls you they need a sound bite
yesterday. Time is of the essence. The politician who is available
and ready to give an interview at a moments notice gets on the air
over and over again.
