Colorectal Cancer Awareness Month - Awareness Kit

How to Get the Media to Cover CRC and/or Your Event

Making news is an excellent way to raise public awareness of colorectal cancer. You can raise awareness by getting media coverage for either colorectal cancer itself or by getting coverage for an event you are hosting about colorectal cancer. Why is media coverage such a powerful tool for raising public awareness? The Freedom Forum Media Studies Center estimates that approximately 20 million Americans read the newspaper and that on an average night between 30 and 40 million people watch network news. Nielsen Media television ratings data indicate that in the average household the television set is on seven and a half hours every day. With the blurring of information and entertainment programming and the proliferation of specialty cable, Americans are getting more news from more places, seven and a half hours a day. From CNN, MSNBC, and even CNBC, to network morning shows, daytime talk shows, local news, and call-in talk shows to late night talk shows and evening news that Americans are watching.

What can CCA members do to get local media coverage of CRC?

As a CCA member and volunteer, you can get our message out in your local community through the local media several ways:

How do you get started?

The first step is to put together a contact list of reporters in your local community. Local media is generally separated into two categories: Print Media and Broadcast Media. Print includes anything written - newspapers and magazines - while broadcast media includes television and radio. Recently, electronic media has made significant inroads, and your local community might have local Internet sites that cover local events. If this is the case, you should also try to identify the content managers at those sites for your contact list.

You'll want to identify the managing editor or health editors for your local newspapers and magazines. For television and radio stations, identify health reporters and general assignment reporters who cover local community news. Assignment editors at the stations will be able to direct you to the right reporters. If your local stations have local talk shows, identify the producers of those shows as well. Once you have the list, you can begin to contact these people.

It would also be extremely helpful to CCA if you would send a copy of your media contact list to Amy Kelly at akelly@CCAlliance.org or to Colon Cancer Alliance 5411 N. University Drive, Suite 202. Coral Springs, FL 33067.

To get coverage of an event

In order to ensure that the media is well informed about your event, you can use several communication tools to get their attention. All of these can be sent on your local organization's letterhead or on CCA's letterhead. You can order the CCA letterhead directly from CCA.

Media Advisories: Send media advisories in February to let the print media know of any events you might be holding in March. Try to give about three weeks notice. An advisory briefly summarizes the Who, What, Where, and When of an event (see samples). A few days before the event, send another advisory with updated information and then make calls to the key people on your list to follow up.

Press Releases: Develop a press release about your event. The press release should emphasize the local angle and use quotes from the local community - preferably dignitaries such as the mayor or city council members. Distribute this release to the media who attend. After the event, revise the press release to include information about how the event went. (see sample)

Public Service Announcements: Contact local radio stations and ask them to broadcast PSA's (public service announcements) prior to your event. Provide public affairs directors with scripts for a 15 second and a 30-second PSA. (see samples). You should have these scripts to them in early February. Send the scripts again one week prior to your event. Follow up with a phone call at this time.

Advance request for coverage: Several weeks before the event, send an advance request for coverage to local television and radio station reporters. Be sure to let them know in advance that March is National Colorectal Cancer Awareness Month, and provide them with the Who, What, When and Where of your event. (see sample) A few days before the event, send another request for coverage, and follow up with a phone call to all reporters on your contact list.

To get coverage of CRC without a specific event:

Even if you are not hosting a specific event, you can still encourage your local media to cover colorectal cancer awareness during the month of March. Use the fact that March is National Colorectal Cancer Awareness Month as the hook. Using the same list of media contacts, the following tools might get you some local coverage:

Press release: Distribute a general press release about National Colorectal Cancer Awareness Month. (see sample). Insert local statistics to the best of your ability (you will find state statistics on page here). Try to get local quotes about the importance of recognizing this disease - quotes from local doctors or council members or other public figures. These press releases should be sent to print and broadcast media contacts in early February. Send a second copy in the last week of February and follow up with a phone call the next day.

Press kit: Send a press kit with a cover letter to the reporters on your contact list. Include in this kit the press release described above and CCA fact sheets to give the reporters the background to write a story. Include in the letter a brief summary of your story or your connection to CRC. Offer your willingness to be interviewed and to help find other sources for interviews. Specifically request that they do a feature on colorectal cancer (see sample). These kits should be sent to reporters in early February, with follow-up calls a week or so later.

Letter to the Editor: Write a personalized letter to the editor for all your local print media. Write a cover letter explaining that March is National Colorectal Cancer Awareness Month and ask that your letter be included in a March issue. Send this toward the end of February by fax or e-mail and feel free to include the general March Awareness Press Release. (see sample 1; see sample 2)

Op-Ed: Many newspapers offer a "guest editorial" slot - not a letter to the editor, but an opinion column. Contact the person in charge of the editorial page of your local paper and ask them to print your op-ed piece (see sample).

After you have been successful:

Please take the time to write to reporters who wrote about or covered your event or CRC in general. Nothing fancy - just a brief note thanking them for bringing such a critical issue to the public. Also, please take the time to tell us about your success. Please send a copy of any print press you received to Amy Kelly. If you received some broadcast media coverage, please send Amy a videotape copy if available or a written description of the coverage. This would also be a good time to send that list of contacts along as well, so we can continue to develop our media contact list for future events. Amy's address again is akelly@CCAlliance.org or Colon Cancer Alliance 5411 N. University Drive. Suite 20. Coral Springs, FL 33067.