CharityComms

The media are desperate for news. That’s the realisation Fundraising Manager Jo Shepheard came to after completing two media work placements in 2007.

Jo, who works for children’s charity Lineham Farm Children’s Centre, spent a week with the local Leeds BBC news team and at regional newspaper.

“I was at BBC Look North in August which, I discovered, is a slow news month,” says Jo. “And at the Telegraph & Argus in October, journalists were desperate for stories for the website which was updated 24 hours a day.

“I realised that if we target the stories we have about children who use Lineham Farm, link them to issues already in the news, they’re likely to get covered.”

Media Connections
This is just one of the things Jo learnt as a result of winning a Media Connections award. It’s a scheme organised by the Voluntary Action Media Unit which gives 20 people working for charities the opportunity to do one or two week placements at top media organisations.

Jo, who’s also worked as a fundraiser for Sue Ryder Care, was keen to take part in the scheme which aims to give charity workers the opportunity to “get inside the mind of the media.” As part of an add-on to her fundraising role, Jo writes press releases, pitches to journalists and deals with other communication issues at Lineham Farm. The farm gives inner city kids and disabled youngsters a break in the countryside.

At the BBC
At the BBC, Jo worked closely with a couple of journalists. “I went to court with a crime correspondent who was reporting on a rape trial. It was really interesting and the first time I’d been to a court,” she says. “With a cameraman, I worked on a story at a local hospital Conservative Leader David Cameron was visiting at the time when everyone thought there’d be a general election. It was interesting to see how the hospital PR manager handled it because the story was about the closing of its maternity unit.”
The experience has honed Jo’s pitching skills. She says it made her realise that you have to target TV companies one at a time. “They don’t want a story that’s going to be scattered across Yorkshire, they want one that’s unique,” she says.

At the regional newspaper
At the Telegraph & Argus, she spent a day in most departments, including features. She wrote two columns, one all about who Lineham Farm is and what they do, and another about how children don’t play outside anymore.

“The Features Editor told me to write about what I knew,” she says. “I’d written bits and pieces for newspapers before but used to think people would sit down and read everything. I learnt how important the first two lines are to grab readers’ attention. Now my press releases are short and sweet and they’re targeted to who I’m sending them to.”

The placements also improved Jo’s confidence. She says she wouldn’t be nervous if a camera crew wanted to do a story about Lineham Farm. And, happily, it made her realise she’s in the right job.

Lessons learnt
“When I was at the newspaper, a police officer had an accident and was knocked off his bike,” says Jo. “News of this brought excitement to the newsroom because there was competition to get the front page story. It made me realise I couldn’t work in newspapers because often journalists’ job is to glorify bad news. At Lineham Farm and at charities in general, we deal in good news, which I prefer.”

Jo recommends charity communicators do similar placements. She’s managed to get a double page spread all about Lineham in Living, a magazine associated with the Telegraph & Argus, as a result of connections she made at the newspaper.

“You have to talk yourself up, tell people why you’re there and what you want to get out of it,” she advises. “But it’s priceless work experience.”