Arab American organizations do a poor job of communications
By Ray Hanania
I attend many conferences hosted by Arab American and Muslim American organizations every year, and there is one thing I always see that consistently undermines their effectiveness. They don’t put enough effort into self-promotion or creating press releases on their events.
By not producing their own press release reports on their events, they are putting their effectiveness in the hands of a very anti-Arab and biased mainstream American news media. Worse is that are failing to exploit a natural resource, their own organic ethnic Arab American news media.
Every organization MUST HAVE a communications or public relations component. Why? Because of you don’t write about yourself, why should anyone else. And, why allow strangers to define your events?
Minimally, Arab AMerican organizations should created at least one press release that covers the overall significant highlights of their conference.
Ideally, however, an effective organizations should have a small staff of writers who cover everything at their event and write a press release about everything that happens. That means writing a press release about the opening of the conference and what was said. It means writing a press release summarizing every panel discussion that is showcased. And, it definitely means writing a press release that covers the major events like the luncheon speeches and events, or, most importantly, the conference’s main banquet.
What is an effective press release? One that is written like a news story. In other words, how would you like to see the story of your conference covered in the New York Times, the Chicago Tribune or the Washington Post. You write your press release like you write a news story, including a compelling lede sentence and focus, several paragraphs details important events at the conference, and quotes from several people from the guest speakers to the organizations chief officers.
I am not saying that your press releases will be republished by the New York Times, the Chicago Tribune or the Washington Post. Those and other mainstream newspapers are not in the business of reporting news. They report on tragedy and controversies that SELL their newspapers and SELL advertising.
But good press releases can also be distributed to news wire services, and distributed to the organic ethnic Arab American news media which WILL publish many of the releases, especially if they are well written.
The phrase “well written” means it does an effective job of reporting the most important things that happened, from your perspective.
Press releases should be at least 600 words, but 800 words is a good length. They should be written in individual sentence format. In other words, this isn’t a college dissertation in which you writers paragraphs of 5 sentences or more. Every sentence is a separate sentence in the release. Maybe, a few sentences are coupled if they closely elaborate on an important related point.
Every press release MUST HAVE a photo. If you have a panel, get an action shot of the panel discussion, not a staged image of the guest speakers opposing for the camera. Although the latter is an OK alternative short of a good action shot of one of the speakers making a great point or who might be the focus of the release.
Don’t think in terms of promoting your organization. A well written news story that includes information about your organization will do far more to promote your organization and event than a press release that buries the lead under a self-serving lede sentence that begins with who you are. Who you are is not the news. What happened IS the news. And a WELL WRITTEN news release will be WELL READ.
You archive the press releases on a page about the conference where people can find them all.
The news media, especially the organic ethnic Arab American news media, is short staffed. They don’t have enough reporters to provide the kind of widespread coverage they used to provide during their heydays in the 1970s and 1980s. So you have to help them. A good newspaper might condense all the releases into one story. Or, the organize ethnic Arab American news media is pick one or two of the releases that interest them.
Every release should end with a basic overview about your organization, or an ABOUT paragraph. It’s mission. Its’ history. It’s officers. And, it’s website.
For more information on how to write a press release, spend a little money on my book “Power PR: Ethnic Activists Guide to Strategic Communications.”
The book lays it all out simply and comprehensively, and even gives you fundamental theory on how to counter stereotypes. Click here for more information.
Ray Hanania is an award winning political and humor columnist who analyzes American and Middle East politics, and life in general. He is an author of several books.
Hanania covered Chicago Politics and Chicago City Hall from 1976 through 1992 at the Daily Southtown and the Chicago Sun-Times. He began writing in 1975 publishing The Middle Eastern Voice newspaper in Chicago (1975-1977). He later published “The National Arab American Times” newspaper (2004-2007).
Hanania writes weekly columns on Middle East and American Arab issues as Special US Correspondent for the Arab News ArabNews.com, at TheArabDailyNews.com, and at SuburbanChicagoland.com. He has published weekly columns in the Jerusalem Post newspaper, YNetNews.com, Newsday, the Orlando Sentinel, Houston Chronical, and Arlington Heights Daily Herald.
Hanania is the recipient of four (4) Chicago Headline Club “Peter Lisagor Awards” for Column writing. In November 2006, he was named “Best Ethnic American Columnist” by the New American Media. In 2009, Hanania received the prestigious Sigma Delta Chi Award for Writing from the Society of Professional Journalists. He is the recipient of the MT Mehdi Courage in Journalism Award. He was honored for his writing skills with two (2) Chicago Stick-o-Type awards from the Chicago Newspaper Guild. In 1990, Hanania was nominated by the Chicago Sun-Times editors for a Pulitzer Prize for his four-part series on the Palestinian Intifada.
His writings have also been honored by two national Awards from ADC for his writing, and from the National Arab American Journalists Association.
Hanania is the US Special Correspondent for the Arab News Newspaper, covering Middle East and Arab American issues. He writes for the Southwest News newspaper group writing on mainstream American issues.
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