Volume 3, Issue 4
Fall 1999
Contents
14 Tips for Talking to Reporters
by Robert A. Thomas, Ph.D., Director, LUCEC and
Joseph L. Bast, President, The Heartland Institute
We are often asked how to address concerns about news articles that someone considers less than adequate
in content and approach. We find that most issue-oriented people do not understand the process of news reporting
or the organization of a newsroom that begins with a news item and ends with the production of a newspaper or news
broadcast.
In response, we explain that the nature of news work, the technicalities of the print and broadcast media, and the characteristics, needs, and expectations of their audience impose special demands and restraints on journalists.
During the course of a conversation, we offer the following suggestions.
- Before contacting the reporter, ask yourself whether the information in the story is satisfactory for the intended readers and substantially complete, or whether the facts are incorrect enough to cause real harm if not corrected. Don’t sweat the small stuff. Choose your battles.
- Know that journalists are not writing for specialists, but for a general audience that does not need (nor necessarily understands) complex scientific and technical information. As a result, they must simplify the information. From your perspective, the result may be an incomplete or inaccurate story.
- Try to reach a reporter by phone before sending a letter or email. A friendly “live” conversation will be more memorable to the reporter and less likely to offend than an impersonal letter or email. At the end of the conversation, offer to send additional information or a recap of the discussion, and do so promptly. Attach your business card so that you get into his/her Rolodex.
- Be polite, informed, and brief. Explain that you have a different or additional perspective from the one expressed in the article, and present it in the fewest possible words.
- Understand that the article may not have run exactly as the reporter wrote it. Because of time or space constraints or because of the press of other news, the original story may have been edited, revised, and/or shortened by others without the reporter’s knowledge or final approval. Also, reporters do not write the headlines or decide on pull-quotes, nor the play (where the story appears on the page or within a newscast). Reporters are often frustrated that changes by others weaken or distort the presentation and/or content.
- Ask questions. Phrase your response as a question rather than as a challenge or statement:
- Ask where the reporter got a particular piece of information with which you disagree. Ask him/her to send a copy of the source to you.
- Ask why he/she relied on a certain source, but didn’t contact another. How did he/she get the information? Offer to send background information on the person or group on which relied (if you have it), and information on more reliable sources from your perspective.
- Ask if he/she knows about research that points in a direction different from the one taken in the article.
- Volunteer to be an informal advisor to the reporter in the future: “Please call me if you address this or related topics again in the future. I can probably help with fact_checking or put you in touch with someone who would be a good source.” And then be available to do so.
- Keep in mind that journalists are educated to be accurate, balanced and fair, and to adhere to such ethical standards as those of the Society of Professional Journalists.
- Assume that the reporter knows all aspects of the issue. He/she may believe the debate is a duel between the forces of good and evil, and articles often transmit this message. Inform him/her that debate is taking place inside the scientific, business, government, and environmental sectors on most environmental issues. On many issues, there is disagreement among environmentalists, as well as among scientists and other groups.
- Assume that the reporter will be open to new information. But know that he/she will check all information thoroughly.
- Assume that the reporter knows as much as you do about any given topic. It is possible he/she left out some fact you believe is critical because further research showed the “fact” to be untrue. Or, information may have been left out because it was not relevant or was too specific for the general audience. You can verify the reporter’s knowledge through conversation, but don’t assume immediately that it is lacking.
- If there is a factual error in the article, you should not shy away from requesting a correction. Follow the normal protocol: ask the reporter, then his/her editor, then the publisher (if not yet resolved).
- If you disagree with the tenor or slant of the article, send a letter to the editor or write a column for the op-ed page (the newspaper’s page of opinion columns) expressing your own view.
- Compliment good reporting if the reporter handled parts of the story well. Reporters don’t get enough praise for work well done.
The bottom-line is simple. Reporters are only as good as their sources and their ability to understand and communicate information. It is your job to be a good source, which includes having good information and communicating effectively - avoiding jargon and the arcane language of your field.
If you follow these suggestions, you are much more likely to make a positive impression on the reporter. Good luck and never hesitate to call and discuss your view point. Good journalists appreciate feed-back.
We thank the following for their critique of the steps: S. L. Alexander, Mike Dunne, Stephanie Grace, Alfred L.
Lorenz, Mark Schleifstein, and Liz Scott.
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Population Genetics Workshop
by Julie DesOrmeaux, Communications Senior
The Loyola University Center for Environmental Communications went south for the summer.
Dr. Robert A. Thomas, LUCEC Director, and Julie DesOrmeaux, communications senior, traveled to Guatemala
City last July to videotape a lecture series on genetics, hosted by the Universidad de San Carlos de Guatemala. The
featured speaker was Dr. Patricia Dorn, Associate Professor for Biological Studies at Loyola University New Orleans.
Photo: Dr. Patricia Dorn speaking on population genetics
Along with Astrid Gutierrez, biology senior, Dr. Dorn presented a four-day workshop on the theory and practice of population genetics and RAPD-PCR, including lectures and labs.
Science professionals from throughout Central America trekked to Guatemala City to take part in an effective step in appropriate technology transfer. Many in the audience were largely unfamiliar with the new molecular biological techniques used in population genetics, topics that may seem elementary to the average biology major.
Dr. Dorn hopes the workshop was highly informative, but also effective in facilitating contacts among Central American scientific researchers.
Upon graduation, many of the students were brimming with collaborative ideas with other professionals in fields such as health care, forensics, botany, veterinary medicine, and population dynamics.
LUCEC’s video collection will be available to educators and researchers throughout Central America.
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The Role of Communication in Attendance Records of Rural Primary School Children
By Joy Christina DeMatteo
By Joy Christina DeMatteo
In rural communities, the relationship between health and education is almost inseparable. While each field
has varying roles, they contribute significantly to the general well-being of families and their communities. These
two areas function as a pair, and the natural cycle of how a community operates is interrupted when communication is
lost. Communication between Community Health Workers and educators influences sustainable developmental efforts
in community programs. In order for children to have satisfactory attendance records in school, their physical
health must be adequate. In extreme cases, negligence from one field may hinder progress in another area as illustrated
in a recent situation affecting a young girl at the Lubansa community school. DAPP Child Aid in Chililabombwe recently
hosted a meeting between Community Health Workers where I discussed the importance of communication between these
sub fields.
In April, I began volunteering in Zambia for 6 months as a Development Instructor with the non-governmental organization (NGO) Development Aid from People to People(DAPP). My role serves as a facilitator between DAPP, Ministry of Education, and the Lubansa community school. Many factors have led to the falling rate of children attending school in Zambia: Distance from the nearest schools, lack of funds to pay school fees, and child labor. However, one perpetual problem facing educators in this country is the chronic absenteeism in schools resulting from unhealthy children in rural communities not being accommodated with local health care.
Although my focus in Lubansa typically involves the organization of a new community school, I have understood how health concerns go hand in hand with educational development. This was brought to my attention one morning when the teacher, Mrs. Rebecca Mkandawire, informed me of a student who was suffering with a wound on her leg that was not getting better. The girl’s attendance in school was dropping because she was feeling too much pain to travel the 2km distance from her home to school. I took one look at the student and was jolted to see the puss and blood that was dripping from her wound. Her lesion encircled about two inches from each end: Cracks were spreading both directions, upward toward her knee and downward toward her ankles.
The teacher reported that the child’s condition has progressively gotten worse over the last two months. Neither the family nor community members have responded to helping the girl. I asked Mrs. Mkandawire if she had contacted the girl’s parents, and she responded that the mother doesn’t have any money to send her to Kakoso Clinic in Chililabombwe, which is the nearest health center about 12km away. There are community health workers in Lubansa, but they also were not aware of the child’s state. I was disappointed by the lack of communication in Lubansa. Over the past two months, I had witnessed the determination within Lubansa in education matters on a weekly basis: the community was entering its eighth week of moulding bricks, and still they were holding together strong. I realized that I could not compare my expectations of education with the health situation in Lubansa.
I hesitated leaving Lubansa that afternoon with the girl on my mind; however, my mountain bike and 12km of cornfields left me with little choice. I considered transporting her on my bike, but my unfamiliarity with how local parents may respond left me with not taking the risk. Rather, I told Mrs. Mkandawire that the District Education Officer, Mr. Silungwe, from the Ministry of Education would be travelling to Lubansa that Friday to deliver some school materials, and I would request his assistance to escort the girl to the clinic in their vehicle.
Images of the girl’s infection flowed through my mind on my way home that afternoon. How could an entire community fail to care for this girl, especially when several community health workers are located in Lubansa? I notified my Project Manager, Peter Chelemu of the situation, and he replied that the mother’s claim for not having enough money is not an adequate excuse for not treating a child. He went on to explain that people will not be overlooked just because they are unable to afford medical treatment. The policy outlines that health workers can provide a referral letter with the patient to the clinic; therefore, no one is denied medical treatment with this form.
That Friday afternoon, Mrs Mkandawire and I accompanied the girl to the clinic with the referral letter. We spent about 1 hour there. Fortunately, her condition had not developed seriously; however, the doctor expressed that the infection could have multiplied to her bones if she hadn’t sought treatment. The doctor prepared to write a prescription, but he ceased after realizing that she did not have the money to pay for it. He advised the child to wash her wound with salt 3x a day to heal the infection.
The next week I consulted with the Chairman of Lubansa about the girl’s condition to ensure that the community would respond accordingly to similar cases in the future. Startled by my incident report, the Chairman later confronted one of the Lubansa Health Workers. Following our conversation, health workers have initiated a new program in the schools with frequent checks every week to monitor the health status in children. The outcome of this new program warrants that health and education have merged to develop stronger methods of communication. Conscientious efforts between health and education sectors in rural communities will boost residents to identify closely with school children to enhance attendance rates in schools.
Joy Christina DeMatteo is a recent graduate from Loyola University in the Department of Communications,
class of 1999.
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Stingless Bee Trail
by Julie DesOrmeaux, Communications Senior
The Loyola University Center for Environmental Communications (LUCEC) helped further research into natural
medicinal remedies while preserving an important Maya tradition by concentrating on one busy little insect: the
Maya stingless bee.
For centuries, the Maya have practiced stingless bee keeping, harvesting the honey once a year for medicine and food. The number of active hives across Mesoamerica is dwindling, with few modern Maya knowing how to properly manage the hives.
Carlota Monroy, biology professor at the Universidad de San Carlos de Guatemala,and her students are working to revive Maya bee keeping throughout Central America. Monroy believes the practice holds substantial economic potential for many Central Americans, and she works to spread proper management techniques.
As part of this preservation project, the LUCEC staff traveled to
Guatemala early last July to put together an instructional video for those interested in bee keeping. Monroy
plans to use the video during workshops held in local villages to teach proper hive care and reproduction.
Maya stingless bees are endemic to Mesoamerica, and there are over 150 known species still in existence. The project is currently using three species.
Photo: Julie DesOrmeaux films while Astrid Gutierrez observes lecture on stingless bees
The Maya pass the hives down from generation to generation, maintaining and harvesting the hives at their homes.
The hives are lost when they become damaged or do not reproduce. When the hives are not properly sealed with mud after harvesting, various insect predators penetrate and destroy the hives.
For successful management, reproduction time and behavior of the bees within the hives must be carefully noted. In addition to the loss of bee keeping skills, the actual stingless bee population is diminishing. Clear cutting for agriculture and fuel wood to support a swelling human population is wiping out the flora on which the bees feed. In the past, tree cutters would save the natural hives from fallen trees and maintain them in their homes. Now most loggers don’t realize the significance of these hives, and after the host tree is cut, the hives are left behind to rot on the forest floor.
Monroy’s campaign aims at village women, who can practice bee keeping near their homes while increasing their household incomes.
In addition to being a delectable food source, stingless bee honey is very useful for problems with the eyes, bruises, vaginal infections, and many other ailments.
Project supporters hope the video and campaign will not only educate Central Americans about bee keeping,
but also raise awareness about the importance of preserving resources for the future.
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Visitors from Abroad
A delegation from China visited with (top) Dr. Robert A. Thomas, LUCEC Director, this summer about methods of integrating environmental communication with regulation.
(L-R) Gua Yuan, Division Chief, Heilongjiang Province (China) Environmental
Protection Agency, Chen Fan, Vice Director, Environmental Protection Bureau of Tibet,
Xu Gang, Vice-Bureau Chief, Shandong (China) Environmental Protection Agency, and Caleb Loo, translator.
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Visitor from Abroad
Darryl D’Monte, a renowned environmental journalist from Mumbai, India,
visited LUCEC after the International Federation of Environmental Journalists meeting in Bogota, Colombia. Darryl met with LUCEC staff and spoke to a number of Loyola classes about the differences between approaches to environmental issues in the Northern vs.
Southern Hemispheres.
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