Working with the Media to Promote Teen Pregnancy Prevention

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MAKING IT HAPPEN104campaign to delay sexual initiationmay target a different agegroup than one that seeksincreased contraceptive useamong sexually active, olderteens. The basic message willneed to be tested—and mayneed to be different—with eachdifferent age group.Breaking the Cycle inHartford, Connecticut, targetsdiverse audiences with variousmessages, though all are consistent:to parents (“talk to yourteens about sex and values”), toother adults (“get involved asmentors”), and to teens (“stayabstinent” for young teens and“be responsible” for sexuallyactive teens).The Montana Department ofHealth and Human Services’Don’t Kid Yourself campaignreaches an audience of sexuallyactive 18- to 24-year-oldsthrough radio and newspaperads, as well as pamphlets andposters, with messages aboutavoiding unintended pregnancy.Gender. Teens are not a monolithicblock; boys and girls needdifferent messages to motivatetheir behavior. The choice ofboys or girls as your targetaudience depends on what willbest achieve the community’soverall prevention goal.As part of its comprehensive maleand father involvement initiative,the California Department ofHealth Services has developed acampaign about sexual responsibilitytargeted to teen boys andadult men.Cultural background. Beingknowledgeable about the cultureof the target audience is essential.Subtle differences in the waydifferent cultures think aboutfamily, birth control, pregnancy,education, the role of girls, maleresponsibility, education, careers,and planning for the future canaffect how various messages areperceived. Culture can also affectyour choice of media. Once messagesare selected, you need toknow about the newspapers thatparticular cultures read, the TVstations they watch, and the factorsthat motivate them to accepta message.Study your targetaudienceA certain amount of informationabout your target audiencewill emerge during the initialprocess of audience selection.At some point, though, you’llneed to explore these groups inmore detail. For example:• Whom do they trust? Whowould be a credible carrier ofthe message—a sports figure?Another teen? A communityorganization or leader?• What do they already thinkabout teen pregnancy? Boys
may think, “It’s a girl thing.”Parents may think, “It’s someoneelse’s problem.”• Where do they get information?Do they watch TV?Listen to the radio? Readperiodicals? In what language?Expand your understanding ofyour target audience. If a programintends to reach teens,watch the TV shows they like,read their magazines, listen totheir music. If parents of teensare the potential audience, youmight attend a local PTA meetingor church gathering. If public officialsare the target, consult thepublic affairs staff of an organizationwith similar interests.The following tools can furtherhelp you study your targetaudience:Advisory groups. Many teenpregnancy prevention initiativescreate ad hoc or permanentgroups of teens or parents toadvise them on all aspects of aninitiative or campaign. This canbe a relatively inexpensive wayto learn more about your targetaudience. It will also draw teensinto the program. Choose anadvisory panel that is similar tothe target audience. Createmore than one if there are multipleaudiences.Surveys. Surveys allow a programto assess the views of arepresentative number of thepotential audience. Large-scaleprofessional surveys or pollscan be expensive, but somepollsters may be willing to addteen pregnancy questions to aplanned poll. A simple questionnaireto administer to smallergroups is another option.Focus groups. A focus group isa gathering of 8 to 10 peoplewho are interviewed by atrained moderator using a preparedlist of questions. Focusgroups are often used to testmessages or actual media products,such as posters or radiospots, for acceptability and easeof comprehension. Table 1 atthe end of this chapter is afocus group discussion outlinethat shows how to structuresuch a conversation.The worksheet on the next pagecan help you define specifictarget audiences.Develop your coremessagesYour core messages contain themost important ideas you wantto get across to your audience.They should reflect your initiative’svalues and should be theFOR MORE INFORMATION ONHOW TO CONDUCT A SURVEYSee Chapter 12 (Volume 3),“Tailoring a Program to YourCommunity Through NeedsAssessment.”105MEDIA
Page 4 and 5: MAKING IT HAPPEN102hours, confident
Page 8 and 9: MAKING IT HAPPENkernel from which y
Page 10 and 11: Core message worksheetDesired Resul
Page 12 and 13: Selecting a media optionOPTIONCONSI
Page 14 and 15: Working with the news mediaMAKING I
Page 16 and 17: MAKING IT HAPPEN114Using the tools
Page 18 and 19: FIELD NOTESMAKING IT HAPPEN116Getti
Page 20 and 21: MAKING IT HAPPEN118• Do not go
Page 22 and 23: MAKING IT HAPPEN120Florida’s six-
Page 24 and 25: MAKING IT HAPPEN122• Create a buz
Page 26 and 27: ConclusionMedia campaigns designed
Page 28 and 29: MAKING IT HAPPEN126Sex Lasts a Mome
Page 30 and 31: TABLE 1 (cont.)MAKING IT HAPPEN128I
Page 32 and 33: TABLE 2Sample media messages for a
Page 34 and 35: TABLE 4Sample facts and stats sheet
Page 36: TABLE 4 (cont.)BRING “BEST BETS T

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