Campaigns to End Violence against Women and Girls - Virtual ...

Campaigners distinguish between “placed” and “earned” media coverage. Placed
media, for example newspaper advertisements or public service announcements, are
produced by the campaign or by a specialized organization, e.g. a public relations (PR)
agency hired for the purpose by the campaign team. Placed media are normally paid for,
but many campaigns on social issues have successfully mobilized pro bono support
from major public relations agencies and mass media (see also Fundraising in this
module). The advantage of placed media is that the campaign team retains virtually full
control of the way in which the message is presented. However, designing effective
advertisements and buying advertisement space or “airtime” demands considerable
resources. This also applies to placed ‘news’ – it is common practice to hire PR firms for
highly visible placement in news media, through opinion pieces (op-eds), pitched
interviews, editorials, etc.
Earned coverage is media coverage produced by journalists, or a free contribution
submitted by the campaign (e.g. letters to the editor, open editorials) that the media
outlet may accept to publish. One does not need to pay for earned media coverage, but
time and skills must be invested to develop constructive relationships with journalists,
and guide them towards supportive, gender-sensitive reporting. See also Tools in
Earned Media Coverage in this section.
ATTRACTING MEDIA COVERAGE
Reporters need to be interested in the campaign and understand its message to cover it
in a supportive manner. Queries from the press should be responded to quickly and
accurately. Fact sheets, reports and any relevant new information should be shared with
media contacts, but it is important not to divulge any information that is not intended for
publication. In violence against women and girls cases in particular, it is essential to
maintain the survivors’ anonymity and avoid naming the person or providing any
identifying characteristics. These precautionary measures are important to maintain
confidentiality and the woman’s safety.
Original, new information attracts journalists’ attention – to find out what is new or
‘newsworthy’ to the journalists targeted, it is important to get to know them and their
work, specifically the ‘desks’ or areas that they cover, e.g. news, city, health, etc.
Knowing which specific areas of focus are covered by which journalists helps to make it
easier to approach them about your campaign issues or pitch them a story angle or
interview to support your campaign. For example, a story idea about the services a new
shelter provides to victims of abuse may not appeal to a news desk reporter as he/she
may not consider it newsworthy, but it might appeal to a city desk reporter looking to
cover stories about city-related events.
Example:
Nicole Kidman, a famous movie actress, is the spokesperson of UN Women’s “Say No –
Unite to End Violence against Women” initiative, a social mobilization platform that is
part of the UN Secretary General’s UNite to End Violence Against Women global
campaign. Her celebrity has helped capture wide attention from the media, and the
public-at-large. Using a celebrity spokesperson can be an effective way to attract media
coverage and bring a message across to an audience that would not pro-actively be
interested in or seek information on VAW.
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Campaigns December 2011