Mara White, VPPR of Irving Toastmasters, has some great advice about how to get your club featured on a TV news spot.
Mara saw a Facebook post from a local TV news station that was looking for interesting “Citizens of Irving” stories. She made contact, exchanged emails, and their club was booked for the news story!
On the appointed date, Nicole Nielsen from CBS News showed up to film and report on the Toastmasters meeting. The club had worked hard to prepare for this event by showing up early, dressing up nicely, and preparing the agenda in advance.
Two members were highlighted for the news story.
Reggie Matthews gave a speech titled “On Death Row,” where he gave a powerful and inspiring presentation about recovering from a brain tumor.
Harry Hall, a Toastmaster for 37 years, represents the longevity of this club. His membership in this organization has been instrumental in his career. He has had a call-in radio talk show, and has written three books, one of which is a multi-award winner up for a film project, and he taught public speaking at the University of Dallas for 23 years. His son, Zane, is now also a Toastmasters member as well as a club officer.
Mara has some helpful advice for any other clubs who want to schedule a TV news reporter. One recommendation is to document the event with lots of still photos and/or personal video during the meeting. So many exciting things were happening, but only a few minutes actually made it into the news story. It would be valuable to have a personal photographer or videographer document the event.
Another recommendation is to get a group photo before the meeting begins. The news reporting caused the meeting to go long. Several members had to leave, and they did not get included in the group photo. If photos are taken at the beginning of the meeting, everyone will have the opportunity to be included.
The last recommendation is to realize that a meeting such as this is going to go long. Members should expect to arrive early and stay late.
Mara says, “I would encourage each VPPR to get to know the members well and find out what your club’s specific news angle(s) could be. Then, look for ways to promote that particular story. The reporter may go with a different angle entirely, but your pitch might at least get them in the door. Each TV network has a community reporter who is looking for interesting stories all the time.”
