Bad name for speaker training
People who have been watching the latest soap opera involving Tiger Woods are coming to the conclusion -- justified perhaps -- that high profile public figures who agree to some type of speaker or media training sound robotic, stiff and insincere.
They see politicians from South Carolina or Nevada read well-rehearsed statements and figure they were programmed without any feeling of remorse or sincerity.
As media trainers for the past 24 years, we aren't johnny-come-latelies to the profession like many who have either lost their jobs in the traditional media or want to go out on their own--they set up a website and hope that clients come calling. We have seen the best -- and worst -- of our profession handle clients in everything from damage control to how to learn to "tweet." Unfortunately there are an increasing number of people calling themselves "experts" in training based on the fact they were either a former multi-award winning TV producer or former media liasion who think they know how to prepare people for 21st century media. They have little or no background in actual reporting, haven't seen the inside of a locker room and cannot relate to athletes in their late teens or 20s.
For many, just the words "media training" symbolize spin or insincerity. They see Tiger Woods make a statement -- then answer questions with pre-packaged answers -- and believe any type of training is not worth the investment of time or money.
Situations like a Woods, Mark McGwire or John Daly should be considered the exceptions rather than the rule. Pre-packaged sound bites, socko salesmanship that sounds more like selling a laundry detergent than true feelings is the corporate PR approach and just doesn't work any more. Nor does condensing your real thoughts into a 140-character "tweet" to an inflated list of followers.
We recently conducted sessions at the Final Four in Indianapolis in cooperation with a long-time client, the National Association of Basketball Coaches. Our message in working with both up-and-coming young coaches and veterans alike in the art of the interview was to be the best of yourself; develop answers that you want not just the reporter to know but fans, fellow coaches and employers to understand and appreciate.
Two pieces of advice: If you have a tough issue or crisis, get in front of it, explain what you can and then move on to how you are correcting it. Think optimistically; rather than dwell on a 6-21 season, explain how that is a learning process for your young team for the following season.
In a world of the Internet, You Tube and picture phones, communications training is a must for all colleges, universities and professional teams. Not the kind given to Woods
They see politicians from South Carolina or Nevada read well-rehearsed statements and figure they were programmed without any feeling of remorse or sincerity.
As media trainers for the past 24 years, we aren't johnny-come-latelies to the profession like many who have either lost their jobs in the traditional media or want to go out on their own--they set up a website and hope that clients come calling. We have seen the best -- and worst -- of our profession handle clients in everything from damage control to how to learn to "tweet." Unfortunately there are an increasing number of people calling themselves "experts" in training based on the fact they were either a former multi-award winning TV producer or former media liasion who think they know how to prepare people for 21st century media. They have little or no background in actual reporting, haven't seen the inside of a locker room and cannot relate to athletes in their late teens or 20s.
For many, just the words "media training" symbolize spin or insincerity. They see Tiger Woods make a statement -- then answer questions with pre-packaged answers -- and believe any type of training is not worth the investment of time or money.
Situations like a Woods, Mark McGwire or John Daly should be considered the exceptions rather than the rule. Pre-packaged sound bites, socko salesmanship that sounds more like selling a laundry detergent than true feelings is the corporate PR approach and just doesn't work any more. Nor does condensing your real thoughts into a 140-character "tweet" to an inflated list of followers.
We recently conducted sessions at the Final Four in Indianapolis in cooperation with a long-time client, the National Association of Basketball Coaches. Our message in working with both up-and-coming young coaches and veterans alike in the art of the interview was to be the best of yourself; develop answers that you want not just the reporter to know but fans, fellow coaches and employers to understand and appreciate.
Two pieces of advice: If you have a tough issue or crisis, get in front of it, explain what you can and then move on to how you are correcting it. Think optimistically; rather than dwell on a 6-21 season, explain how that is a learning process for your young team for the following season.
In a world of the Internet, You Tube and picture phones, communications training is a must for all colleges, universities and professional teams. Not the kind given to Woods
Posted by Randy Minkoff at 4/6/2010 10:00 AM 
Categories: uncategorized
Tags: Tiger Woods et al set back training for all
Categories: uncategorized
Tags: Tiger Woods et al set back training for all
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