BAIDO and Media Alliance Convene Lively Media/NGO Dialogue

The best recipe for NGOs to get their news into the press may lie in a mixture of old-fashioned storytelling flavored with marketing know-how: throw a compelling pitch to a willing audience, and tell timely, newsworthy stories in a well-crafted way.

But this strategy can be daunting for NGOs with modest budgets, not conventionally "sexy" news to share, and small staffs unaccustomed to "selling" stories.

The divide between NGOs working abroad and the press reporting at home--and how to improve coordination and cooperation between the two groups--was the focus of the Bay Area Media/NGO Dialogue, the first public event in recent memory on local press coverage of international news stories. It was held on September 30 in San Francisco.

Co-sponsored by BAIDO and Media Alliance, the event was paneled by professionals from the media and NGO worlds and moderated by Dalya Massachi, the Executive Director of BAIDO. The audience of nearly 40 people included several nonprofit workers and local reporters.

Michael Krasny, the host of the program "Forum" on KQED Public Radio, noted that NGOs are valuable as voices with unique perspectives on foreign affairs, but to enhance their media exposure, Krasny urged NGOs to "sell" their substantial story lines in imaginative ways. He also suggested NGOs abroad use contacts such as embassies and consulates to help find outlets for their messages.

A former editor and foreign affairs columnist at the San Francisco Chronicle, Lewis Dolinsky estimated that NGO staff accounted for about one-fifth of the sources for his columns, but said that NGOs have to better understand the idea of "lead time" for stories, find articulate spokespeople, and identify proper media contacts.

"NGOs often provided really good stories about things that were happening on the ground and would really give you a feeling for what was going on in the country," he said.

Krasny and Dolinsky both emphasized the need for NGOs to form trustworthy relationships with the media, a theme revisited frequently during the dialogue.

While conceding the value of practical journalistic tips, NGO representatives on the panel appealed to media players of all types to be responsive to solid news stories.

Catriona MacGregor Glazebrook, the Executive Director of Pacific Environment, believed the media has a duty to educate the public by covering positive NGO stories that tend not to grab mainstream headlines.

"If [international groups that work here in SF and nationally] can obtain coverage for some of the areas where they work, it really helps to advance environmental, civil rights, and human rights issues in those places," said Glazebrook.

She also maintained that NGOs must think professionally about how to publicize their news, and recommended Media Alliance, which advocates for diversity and accountability in the press, as a resource for training NGOs to become more media-savvy.

Amie Michalek, the Outreach Director for Child Family Health International (CFHI), has pursued alternative media sources, such as online publications and local ethnic media, to get CFHI’s news to the public.

"When you can develop relationships with those kind of smaller media outlets, they’re really likely to listen to your message because not many people approach them, or haven’t traditionally," Michalek said, adding that BAIDO, which coordinated a press release for member organizations this summer, is an excellent go-between for NGOs and the media.

Jeff Perlstein, the Executive Director of Media Alliance, joined the panel for the question-and-answer session, and advised NGOs to be active in writing letters to the editors, producing op-ed articles, and building supportive relationships with media professionals in order to get noticed in the press.

Tapes/CDs of the Sept. 30 event are available for $10 (members) or $12 (non-members). Buy Online