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Chicago Private Investigators and Detective Agency - Calrson Investigations, Inc.

Illinois Private Investigations based in Chicago

Publications by Susan Carlson, CLI, CRT

“MEDIA 101”

When To Call In The Press and How To Do It

by Susan Carlson, CLI, CRT

INTRODUCTION

Circumstances of some cases are of such that to assure the best chance of a successful outcome, it would be beneficial to bring in the media. How do we do that? Do we need to hire a publicist, or do we learn to be our own media experts?

A HIGH PROFILE POTENTIAL

Hit and run, kidnapping, missing persons, murder, street crime... what does the investigation of these matters all have in common? The answer is this: Information from the public is often needed in order to solve the case.

Although it is important not to overlook the obvious canvas of the neighborhood and a well designed flyer, newspaper articles and television coverage will exponentially increase the number of people able to be reached. The power of mass communication is immense and can often times help private investigators solve cases.

Below are the different tactics and steps to follow when publicizing an investigation:

THE PRESS RELEASE

The first thing to do is create the perfect press release. This must be written in a clear and concise manner, similar to how we might write the introduction to an investigative report.

The four “W's” are vital: Who, What, When and Where. In a well- crafted press release, you will not see the How or Why as the purpose of the release is simply to get the information out to the appropriate channels so that the media can find it and include information about the case in: news articles, news broadcasts, blogs, radio interviews, etc.

On a minute by minute basis, media assignment desks receive releases over the wire and immediately assess them for news worthiness. A good title for the release is important. For example, for a recent case in which a girl was struck and killed by a hit and run driver, I sent out the following release:

FAMILY AND FRIENDS OF _____ OFFER $10,000 REWARD FOR INFORMATION LEADING TO THE ARREST AND CONVICTION OF HER KILLER

Within minutes, hundreds of websites picked up the release and were displayed on Google and other search engines. A day later Google had expanded to 854 hits on the subject and it continued to rise daily. One of the reasons for the explosion on the net was that the title contained key words which got the attention of the media assignment editors and these same words are indexed by search engines as well. Key words such as “reward” and “killer” are good search engine optimization words (SEO). Also “private investigator” can be utilized as a good catch phrase.

The main body of the release should be equally attention grabbing while putting forth the theme of the case to the public. In the above case, I needed to relay WHO was killed, What happened, When the event occurred and Where it occurred.

A good closing line is simply a call to action that lists the contact information of the investigator, a police contact (if this is preferred by the family) and/or an established and separate toll free number to which the public may call, should someone have useful information. An offer of a reward is sometimes useful to bring people forward with information that might not otherwise come forth, but it is not vital to include.

At the end of the release, the wire company will list the investigator as media contact.

THE PRESS CONFERENCE - Preliminary Information
To take case exposure to a higher level, a press conference can be an invaluable tool. A skilled investigator can facilitate this.

As soon as there is enough information to take public, it is time to set up a press conference. The first step to accomplish this is to determine the time and place. In the above hit and run matter, I chose the tavern which employed the deceased victim and gathered the support of the owners of the establishment, and the victimʼs family. Depending on the nature of the case, a local aldermanʼs office, family residence or even the scene of the crime can be utilized for the press conference. If choosing an outdoor venue, it is good to have a backup plan indoors at the same location in case of bad weather.

THE PRESS CONFERENCE - Set Up
The press conference set up is labor intensive for a very short amount of time and should be completed approximately 24 hours before the actual time it is to take place.

When absolutely necessary, press can be notified the morning of an event, but this is not recommended.

The first thing to do is to craft an individual e mail to each member of the press on the investigators list. (the info on the list follows in the source sidebar). At this time, an investigator should try to capitalize on the emotional matter of the case and send a request to the media personal to attend the press conference. Ask for help to spread the word.

This needs to be extremely short. Two sentences are best. Send a link to the press release and attach a message such as"

“Perhaps you saw this ... I am a private investigator hired by the family ... We are holding a press conference at _____(place) on______(day) at ________ (time) ... We would greatly appreciate it if you are able to attend."

The second sentence should be a brief explanation about who will speak at the press conference and what they are expected to say. The press wants to know why they should be there to cover the event.

You may choose to add that you, as the private investigator, will also give details of the case and the investigation itself. If the case is an ongoing police investigation, it may be appropriate to discuss this with police personnel, but common sense and good skills will dictate.

THE CONFERENCE ITSELF
If the press release is well crafted, and the conference properly set up, the press will cover it.

Be prepared for a flurry of calls from reporters and producers at the last minute who want a jump on it and are looking for an exclusive piece of information that will give them an edge. This is where some finesse is crucial. A good multi-tasker will have an advantage with this part of the process.

At the conference, or before if possible, it is best to prep the family (or whomever is speaking) as to what to expect and what is expected of them. You may instruct them to prepare a statement or speak at the last minute from the heart, or both. Explain that you may stand/or sit next to them to answer media concerns, if questions are asked of you. Let them know that it is THEIR PRESS CONFERENCE . Be prepared to greet all of the members of the media as they arrive and direct them to your pre determined area to set up. Briefly introduce them to each other, although they usually already know their counterparts. Next, you may choose to introduce them to the family. It is a stressful atmosphere and it is beneficial to put everyone at ease as they arrive.

Also, it is a good idea to pass out a “media alert” handout which is simply a brief recap of the case, with spellings of all those involved and contact information. A table set up by the entrance/exit can also be set up to accomplish this. Either way, be sure to include a business card.

Someone has to be in charge and you are that person. This is investigative capital at its best. Use it to your advantage.

ADDITIONAL EFFORT
The power of the internet is vast. After the press conference, consider putting footage on YOUTUBE. Often, you are able to get discarded footage from your press corps (or you can set up on a tripod and tape the conference) and you can get it out there yourself. If you are good with Twitter or know someone who is, it certainly does not hurt to get a dialogue going, if case appropriate. Also, look for bloggers who might be interested in writing about your case. I recently found a blog by a leading personal injury law firm and they added my case information to the firmʼs blog. Any source of mass media is a good source.

IN CONCLUSION
Media relations may differ depending on the area of the country one practices in. In a large metropolitan area such as Chicago, where I am based, the above procedure for calling in the press has been successful. Professional investigators in smaller or rural markets may find that it works better to modify the steps to better fit their individual style. No matter where we live, It is rewarding to see the results of our efforts on TV, in newspapers and on the Internet. To solve a case and bring justice to a victim's family and loved ones is a feeling that is difficult to describe to an outsider but for the professional investigator, it is something that we live for. The media can help.

A wire service is a news agency that supplies syndicated news by wire to newspapers, radio and television stations through out the country and world wide.

Determine which wire company you will use to send your press release out over the wire. Establish and account immediately and ask for their procedures.... most likely they will be more than happy to walk you through it. Cost of an average length press release ranges from $ 400.00 - $ 450.00, depending on word count. Initially, a credit card is the preferred method of payment, but once an account is established, most wire companies will invoice for future releases.

I use Business Wire (www.businesswire.com), but there are other reputable providers such as PR Newswire (www.prnewswire.com) and MarketWire (www.marketwire.com).

Use the internet or the telephone to get a list of producers and reporters from local papers and television stations. Most TV stations and newspapers have websites that list the e-mail addresses (sometimes phone numbers) for their staff. Note on your list which reporters cover crime, legal issues and human interest and concentrate on those individuals. Since it is the role of media producers to decide which stories get coverage, it vital to include producers in addition to e mailing reporters directly. If a reporter has an interest in a specific story, he or she may go to the producer to get the "OK" to cover a piece but it is the producer who has the final say. The acceptable form of communication is e mail. Sometimes the reporters will give you their cell numbers for future use and producers may request that you contact them for breaking news as well as future topics. If there is no money in the budget to put a news release out over the wire, or if massive coverage of the story is not desired, then a release can be sent directly to media personnel and the use of a wire service is not necessary. The results are not the same, but it is good coverage non the less.

-- This article was featured in PI Magazine, June 2010 edition --

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