Ivy Mendoza of Manila, Philippines writes:

“My small PR firm just got an account that needs a lot of exposure in the lifestyle sections. The previous PR person had been sacked due to some anomalies which she was supposed to have committed while conniving with the client’s marketing department.

“To neutralize the situation, the marketing people have gradually been replaced, the marketing manager was asked to resign, and the contract of the old PR consultant was no longer renewed.

“The problem is that the previous PR person has already started badmouthing the client to editors who she is very close to. One particular editor of a very highly-circulated newspaper has already declared that our client’s press releases will not see print in her section anymore. They liked the old PR person and they believed everything that person said about the client.

“The client (not us, the PR firm) wants us to start on a clean slate, so they made an effort to appease this particular editor by setting up a meeting. But the editor flat out refused to meet with them and directly said that she cannot help the client anymore as far as press releases are concerned.

“What should we do? Her paper and her section are very important for our client because of its target readership and circulation. I advised the client to let the editor ’thaw’ first and just use other sections of the same newspaper (Business, Entertainment, etc.) in the meantime. Would you have other tips for me as far as ‘power tripping’ media is concerned?

“Thanks much and I will really appreciate your help!”

Today’s Crossroads section in the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel has an excellent package of articles on how the newspaper’s editorial board works.

It includes an explanation of how it chooses letters to the editor, how it decides who will be the community and syndicated columnists, bios of the editorial board members, and how the board formulates the positions it takes in the daily editorials. It also includes a somewhat boring video of a typical editorial board meeting in which there’s little if any dissent, no arguing and none of the sparks that can really make those meetings fun.  

The one article missing from the package was an explanation of how to work with the editorial board. It mentions that members of the public can schedule a meeting with the board, but it doesn’t explain the types of circumstances when someone might want to meet, or how to prepare for the meeting.

As a former member of four newspaper editorial boards during my 22 years in the business, I recommend you approach the editorial boards of your local newspapers, particularly when you need their support for a cause or issue. You can also ask for a meeting when:

—You are about to break a sensitive news story and you want to meet with the board before the story appears, to provide background and try to win them over to your side early.  Some sources ask for “off the record” editorial board meetings, and sometimes editors agree because they want to be in the loop and have all the information they need when the story breaks.

—The newspaper has been printing unfavorable editorials about you and you want to present your side.  But don’t expect to change their minds.

—You feel the newspaper has treated you unfairly or has demonstrated media bias.

—You feel that the reporter who has been assigned to your beat has a vendetta, an agenda, or is purposely out to get you.  Meet with the board only after you have exhausted all other means.  That includes contacting the reporter’s immediate supervisor. 

—You have a new chief executive officer who you want to introduce to the board simply for a “getting to know you” session.  Few organizations bother to do this.  Yet the bigger and more newsworthy your organization, the better the chances they will want to meet with you. 

In my “Special Report #33: How to Win the Support and Respect of Newspaper Editorial Boards,” I explain several important things you should do before meeting with an editorial board. Here are a few of them:

Do your homework

Decide beforehand the key points you want to get across and be prepared to present appropriate background information to support them.  You might even put your key points in writing and present them to members of the board when you meet with them.

Practice your presentation

Make sure you know how long you’ll be able to present, and leave time for questions. Practice your presentation so you aren’t tongue-tided, particularly if you dread the thought of sitting at a table with seven or eight newspaper executives who might grill you.

Anticipate difficult questions

Compile a list of the most difficult questions you can image being asked.  Craft responses for each one.  Then practice your responses until you are comfortable with them. 

I’ve written here about how newspapers are dying, but until they’re gone forever, the newspaper editorial board remains a powerful group of people you’ll want on your side.

I wish journalists everywhere would read the column headlined “Spitzer’s Media Enablers” in yesterday’s Wall Street Journal.

It was written by Kimberley A. Strassel, who covered the well-publicized investigations of Eliot Spitzer, the former New York prosecutor and governor who fell from grace this week after hiring high-priced call girls. Strassel writes the Journal’s Potomac Watch column from Washington and is a member of the paper’s editorial board.

She builds a great case on how most reporters who covered him were his accomplices. Giddy with delight at his prosecution of Wall Street big-wigs, journalists felt obligated to run with whatever ”scoops” he handed to them without stopping to question whether he was using his power to punish and even destroy private citizens.

Journalists and ivory-tower professors spend hours and sometimes even entire industry conventions debating among themselves ethical issues such as how to cover politicians and others involved in sex crimes (see “Framing Your Spitzer Coverage: Issues and Questions”) and little time addressing the obvious bias the Wall Street Journal column discusses.

At times, I dislike doing media interviews, particularly with reporters at top-tier publications whose interview style makes me feel rushed, or I suspect the journalist is either dense or biased.

Crisis counselor Lou Hampton of the Hampton Group in Washington, D. C. says we don’t have to be afraid. He offers these six handy phrases to use during interviews:

1. “Let me repeat that, because it’s such a critical point…”
2. “One trend we see…”
3. “The key point is…”
4. “The bottom line is…”
5. “The one thing people need to realize…”
6. “What is especially exciting/surprising/unexpected…”

The phrases are included in Lou’s deck of Mem-cards, a package of 26 cards, each featuring a media tip for Hounds who interview. Use the cards as handy reference tools while you’re waiting in the green room on the “Today” show. They also make great gifts for clients—even if you’re on a budget. The cards are $9.97 per deck until August 31.

If you’re involved in a news story and you’re afraid the media will misrepresent you, slant the news, or write it according to their own agenda, don’t refuse comment, thinking they’ll just go away and leave you alone.

As I’ve said so many times before, refusing an interview is akin to screaming “we’re guilty,” even if you aren’t.

Instead, do what many executives and other news sources are doing. Tell the journalist you will consent to an email interview. Howard Kurtz, media columnist at the Washington Post, says in a recent column that in the digital age, some executives and commentators are doing just that. An email interview gives them a permanent record of the exchange and makes it extremely unlikely they will be misquoted.

Others, who don’t want any communication whatsoever with journalists are simply saying, “You know what I think? Read my blog.” That’s a risky tactic. And a reporter still might be tempted to say “Joe Flibeetz refused comment.” But still, blogging, is a terrific way to let journalists research you and your topic.

In most cases, there’s nothing wrong with email interviews. In addition to having a permanent record of the discussion, you have time to craft a response. 

If your company is faced with a crisis, however, like a major industrial accident, make your executives and PR people available for phone or face-to-face interviews, and train them beforehand on how to interview when the news is bad and how to improve accuracy in news stories. Being available to the media is more important than ever during a crisis.