Phone rings.
YOU: Hello?
REPORTER: Hi Congressman Duckincover? It’s Ino DeStory from the Daily Muckraker. Got a minute?
YOU: Actually, Ino, I’m going into a meeting. Can I call you right back?
REPORTER: Yeah, sure. No problem.
YOU: What are you looking for?
REPORTER: I wanted to ask you about the Appropriation Committee's approval of $12 million for the business park being developed by your brother.
(Don't panick.)
YOU: I’d be happy to talk to you about that. What’s your deadline?
REPORTER: I have to file the story by 5 p.m.
YOU: Give me a number where I can call you back.
(Reporter gives you a number.)
YOU: Okay, as soon as I’m done, I’ll call you right back.
As soon as you hang up, you call your PR people. You discuss the story, get your message together and decide how best to handle the press call. Do you do submit to a phone interview, have your spokesman return the call or email a written response? One thing is for certain: NOT responding is NOT an option. Remember, every media call, no matter how difficult or controversial, is an opportunity for you to get your message out. If you duck and cover, you forfeit the chance to frame the debate and get your side of the story in the first day's coverage. You also look like you're hiding something. (See "The Cardinal Sins of Public Relations")
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