MAJ Raja Chari says:
As it turns out, skillfully working with the media can actually do a lot of good. Imagine a situation where your troops have mistakenly killed a small boy in a foreign country and you have to explain it. Not realistic, you say. Well, what about the current press interviews of U.S. leaders trying to explain what happened when a soldier allegedly massacred villagers in Afghanistan?
My experience with the media had left me skeptical and skittish about interacting with them, but Advanced Media Training provided some near-real-world experience to reverse those reservations. The training provided in CGSC class as part of the standard C100 syllabus was good, but AMT provided much more extensive practical experience.
The lab training itself consisted of three mock interviews: a remote interview, a press conference, and a talk-show type setting. Besides the general lessons regarding interview prep, command messaging, and communications skills, actually executing the forms of interviews provided me a number of anecdotal lessons-learned that I would never have thought of until doing the real thing.
For example, some of the practical tricks of the trade I would have never anticipated were: 1) how bright the studio lights are and how long it takes your eyes to adjust so you’re not squinting; 2) doing concise mic checks and not getting lulled into thinking that chitchat conversation isn’t being recorded; and 3) asking the reporter to see/read the direct quotes they plan on airing/writing in context.
In the end, I realized that not only will dealing with the media be inevitable in my future, but that I should actually seek it out to try to communicate a strategic communications message. The reality is that journalists are like soldiers in that they’ve got a job to do, and they’ll figure out a way to get it done. If the military is not willing to provide them with information or talk to them about a negative story, they’ll look for alternative sources. Often times those will turn out to be much more damaging. Using the media is just one more aspect of soft power that the military officer needs to be proficient in employing.
MAJ Raja Chari, USAF
ILE 12-02, Staff Group 3A
4 Comments on "Picking up practical tricks"
I agree with my peers that media training is invaluable. I also contend that the training should be conducted at the Basic and Captain’s Career Courses (and reviewed, not introduced at CGSC).
Having been interviewed on three occasions as an unprepared junior officer, I can personally attest to the importance of the training. I was surprised to be interviewed, surprised by the line of questions that drifted from those originally presented and in the end surprised by the final product. Considering the reach of a single broadcast, surprise due to inexperience or lack of exposure should not be part of the equation. Officers and Soldiers within our ranks are more likely to come in contact with the media than they may themselves expect or realize (for this reason I believe mandatory/ not optional media education is appropriate).
The practical exercise offered in the media block drove home the lesson material as only sitting in front of your peers and a video camera can.
MAJ Khirsten Schwenn
CGSC 12-03
I agree with MAJ Mack that this training should also be conducted at an earlier stage in a Soldiers career. Officers and Enlisted personnel should be knowledgable on how to handle media in both controlled and uncontrolled environments.
The age of the internet makes any Private or 2LT capable of reaching a wide audience. Knowing what to say, when to say (or not to say), and how to say something is important when representing the United States. Just learning the basics and conducting a mock interview helped me realize the media can be a tool to get Army messages out to the public.
I’m an ILE student at the Ft. Belvoir Satellite Site. I was not expecting to learn anything from this block of instructions.
Although I realize media engagements and getting the Army’s message out is important and our way of life, I anticipated not having to ever worry about it or that it looked simple enough and I would knock it out. The Rolling Stones article also had me fearful and encouraged more angst to shy away.
It is incredible how nervous or how different it felt to actually sit in front of a camera and give a mock press conference. I thought it would be as simple as speaking in front of a group. It was also enlightening to develop and answer questions for the case study.
The feedback and having the actual footage from the exercise efectively demonstrated the importance and the proper way to prepare and maintain control of an interview or press conference.
Since company commanders are more engaged in the tactical arena, maybe this block of instructions can be incorporated in the carrier course simply for exposure. The more that officers are exposed, the better armed we will be.
Cheers
MAJ Camille Mack
CGSC 12-03
MAJ Raja,
I agree with your analysis of the Advance Media Training. This was a great opportunity for those with little or no experience with the media to get a perspective on how it works. The three interviews that were conducted provided valuable insight and plenty of TTPs for you to think aobut prior to conducting a media engagements.
MAJ Carlile