Ami Neiberger, APR, MA’s Post

Some dreams never die. Sometimes life gives you another chance. I am taking my first official doctoral program class today at Shenandoah University. My Ph.D will be in organizational leadership with an emphasis in communications. It’s a part-time program for people who work full-time. I took an elective over the summer, and a class at Harvard online during my divorce. Shenandoah will even count some of my graduate credits from the degree I didn’t finish at the University of Florida years ago because I moved away from campus after marrying. So I’m starting with nearly a third of my credits done. My hope is to use the degree for teaching and additional consulting work. Being at this point feels - wonderful. Today I’ll be on zoom til 730pm for class and will have to miss the kick off for my daughter’s first high school game as a JV cheerleader but the cheer mamas have my back and will take video and photos. I’ll hopefully make it by half time as it’s an away game.

Glad I could help Paul Lawrence talk with Theresa Carpenter, APRᐩM on her podcast (Stories of Service) about his book, "Veterans Benefits for You: Get What You Deserve." The conversation is informative and helpful. #veterans #veteransbenefits

A lot of people think PR professionals only write press releases or are constantly pitching to journalists. While there are definitely PR people who specialize in media relations (including me), the tasks done by PR professionals are often quite broad. A great PR professional is focused on getting a client's messages in front of a key audience - and we use big skill toolboxes. I got this "miracle worker" t-shirt years ago as a joke, but here's a few examples of things I have done in my career: - wrote an e-newsletter 3x a week covering key news for an industry to keep a client informed of major developments. - crafted a multi-pronged strategic outreach plan including PR, advertising, web improvements, community outreach, and social media for a client targeting a specific niche audience. - briefed members/volunteers on how to talk on Capitol Hill about issues. - liaisoned with Congressional or state legislative staff on efforts to move legislation. - come up with a concept, screened people for interviews, sat in on all of the interviews, and worked with a video firm to create a compelling narrative. - arranged for therapists/grief counselors to be available after difficult media interviews. - drafted talking points for someone getting ready to do an interview. - followed-up with a radio producer, tv producer, print journalist about interview scheduling. - talked a client out of a terrible story idea and into a better one. - wrote press releases, congressional testimony, training materials, curriculum, chapters, features, ad copy, a book (!) and exhibit copy. - planned book signings, press conferences, community outreach events, press rooms at a trade show, program announcements, zoom symposiums, a movie premiere, and more. - testified for Congress on key issues and prepared others. - served as spokesperson for an organization or offered information on background to reporters. - weighed in on a website design and looked for usability issues - not to mention 16 type-os. - reviewed a publication design and recommend the logo be in the correct place and the right color. - managed media registration for a major trade show. - drafted social media copy and found images that can be used for posts. - responded to a rapid media request due in 2 hours. - stage managed a fundraising event held by a client for their major donors. - dealt with the publication warehouse, promotional product ordering, t-shirts for an event, staging, catering contracts, tech and video crews, and a zillion other details. - did media interviews while standing in a rickety boat, with painting by kids on my face, and while bribing my toddler with a cupcake. - trained journalists in how to approach and interview trauma survivors.

This Bob Newhart clip is a classic that is frequently used in media relations training, to help clients understand that they need to be well-prepared before a media interview. It is funny and pretty much shows everything that can go wrong in a media interview (other than say a bird landing on your head), but it also illustrates some key principles. Understand the perspective the interviewer could bring to the interview - she opens with saying he could be a con man, a snake oil salesman, and that she agrees with this perspective. Ask ahead of time what you might be asked so you can prepare. Bob falls right into it and gets into a back and forth about guaranteeing his work. She even says Chicago is waiting for his answer and he picks the term up and repeats it back. When Bob mentions an elected official is one of his patients, that just makes it worse and leaves him struggling. #mediatraining #mediarelations #BobNewhart

Today is Gold Star Child Day. I have met far too many children who have lost a parent who served in the military. Yet I have also seen bereaved children be incredibly resilient even though the world has placed so much on their young shoulders.

I sometimes am asked by clients about asking the media to make a correction. About 70% of the time it is not worth it usually - the error is not really an error (more a matter of opinion about a turn of phrase where the client might not like how something is described), or is so insubstantial it does not really influence how the reader, viewer or listener might perceive the overall story. And there is a relationship factor to consider - is asking for a correction going to burn goodwill with a journalist for the client? But there are situations where asking for a correction is necessary to fix an error or omission and can make a big difference. In my experience, ethical reporters want to know if there is a mistake or error that is significant. In this new twist on the topic, a Loudoun County official claims WJLA’s reporting on hot-button issues shows a ‘dishonest’ slant and the county has filed a dispute with the FCC. Station owner Sinclair calls it an attempt to ‘shut down critical news coverage.’

The Afghanistan War Commission wants to hear from veterans who served. Share your perspective and your questions for the Commission here: https://lnkd.in/e9Y7UezZ #veterans #afghanistan

Yesterday Dan Lamothe at the Washington Post waded into an issue that has vexed the military family community for a long time - how to define what is a gold star family. At issue is how the government defines it, how nonprofits define it, and how survivors define it. The matter is emotionally charged. I know Andy Weiss personally, and have worked with and know well many of the people quoted in this story. As an advocate and supporter for grieving military families, I have often seen situations that inflicted pain on survivors because people used varying definitions of gold star or would only recognize certain families - based on where someone died, how they died, or their relationship to the person who died. My brother Chris was killed in combat in Iraq in 2007. My personal opinion is that it takes nothing from my brother's service and sacrifice, if another family has the gold star designation. I see it as a survivor who knows others carrying tremendous pain. I know many families with loved ones who died in training accidents stateside or overseas. Yet their losses are deemed "not enough" for gold star status - when their loved ones were on duty for America, doing all that was asked of them. I know families whose loved ones were exposed to toxins during deployment and came home to sicken and die in front of them. As the sister of a KIA soldier, I have no real ID card that says I am a gold star family member. The Army offered base access cards years ago - mine is hand-lettered and looks like it was done by a 3-year-old in a garage - it is laughable. When a restaurant says they want to provide a benefit for gold star families, I don't even attempt to access it, because I'm not a spouse or a child with no official military ID- and it's too painful to try to "prove" I am a gold star family member. Do I show them the gold star license tags on my car? One would think grief might be enough of an ID, but it is not. The article does not go into it, but memorialization questions are linked to this issue and are playing out now all over the US - as communities determine which names go on memorials for the Global War on Terror. Which names get honored. Which do not. In Virginia a monument on our state capitol grounds has refused to include deaths in war zones not in combat (about 25% even at the height of an active war are noncombat deaths - heart attacks, traffic accidents, building collapses, weather-related crashes). One of the Marines they refuse to add is buried in section 60 near my brother and died in Iraq on a helicopter in a sandstorm. He was on duty for America - wasn't his service good enough for a line with his name on a memorial? I pray we can come up with a way to honor all who have served and sacrificed for this great country and comfort their families. We gave our very best.

Just before the July 4th holiday, the Virginia House and Senate announced a deal to repeal changes that would gut the Virginia state program that provides free tuition to families of seriously injured veterans, some gold star families and families of police officers who die in the line of duty. This followed a turbulent week where the Senate convened and then did not pass a bill identical to the one that cleared the House. The number of people utilizing the program has increased in recent years as the children of 9/11 veterans are growing up and going to college. The situation has drawn the attention of national veterans service organizations and advocates, who fear that if this program falters, it could spell bad tidings for tuition aid programs assisting veteran and gold star families in other states.