2013 Media Training & Communications

Track A: Media Lab Intensive: A Camera-Ready Experience

Provides a small group setting to observe, prepare for and practice print, radio and TV interviews. This track is for those who have been designated by their organizations with the responsibility of participating in media interviews during crisis and/or rapid-response situations.

This track is ideal for individuals who work in laboratory animal research and for others, such as CEOs and Institutional Officials who hail from other disciplines, who are looking to develop and refine their readiness for animal research-related media inquiries. This track will address:

KEY MESSAGES AND TALKING POINTS ABOUT ANIMAL RESEARCH
Participants will review key messages, media FAQs, talking points and responses for use in animal research related crisis and rapid response situations. Participants will receive a handbook that will assist in developing messages and responses to future media inquiries.

MEDIA TRAINING FOR PRINT, RADIO AND TV
Participants will learn and practice techniques needed for successful media interviews with print, radio and TV reporters.

MEDIA INTENSIVE
This session will provide attendees the opportunity to learn by participating in and observing television interview scenarios with the camera rolling. Those who participate in the on-camera mock interviews will receive a video copy of their experience. Participants leaving this session will feel prepared for future live, on-camera interviews about animal research-related topics.

TRACK LEADER:
PATRICK GIBBONS, VICE PRESIDENT OF PUBLIC RELATIONS AND CORPORATE COMMUNICATIONS, RTI INTERNATIONAL
Patrick is responsible for institute-level internal, external and marketing communications programs, including research communications, media relations and crisis communications, for RTI International, one of the world’s largest independent nonprofit research and development institutes.

Track B: A Holistic Approach to Preparing Your Institution for Activist Campaigns

Helps participants take all possible steps to prepare their organizations, their partners and their communities for a variety of activist scenarios, thus greatly reducing the potential for damage to their organizations or harm to their personnel as the result of an actual incident. This track will cover the following material:

ASSESSING YOUR INSTITUTION’S VULNERABILITIES
What is it about your institution that makes it a potential target for animal rights activists? The answer goes far beyond the question of whether animals are used in research. Participants will determine their level of risk through a vulnerability audit and will explore the elements of planning for numerous scenarios, including records requests, media and social media campaigns, infiltrations, allegations of animal negligence or abuse, facility and home protests, and threats of violence against personnel.

HARDENING THE TARGET: REDUCING THE LIKELIHOOD OF ANIMAL RIGHTS DAMAGE TO YOUR INSTITUTION’S REPUTATION
Crisis planning is only one element of an effective communication strategy. It is essential to educate potential partners prior to a crisis and build your institution’s reputation among relevant stakeholders before you are in the midst of a media storm. We will discuss target audiences — both internal and external — that you must reach proactively, and how to prepare them in case of an adverse event.

MAKING YOUR PLAN WORK FOR YOU
No matter how prepared you are, facing a crisis is tremendously challenging. We will discuss how to create an environment of physical, legal and psychological support for those who may be targeted. We also will provide advice that will help facilitate your interactions with the media, law enforcement and other entities during a crisis.

TRACK LEADERS:

• EARLE HOLLAND, FORMER ASSISTANT VICE PRESIDENT, RESEARCH COMMUNICATIONS, OHIO STATE UNIVERSITY
• JIM NEWMAN, ASSOCIATE DIRECTOR FOR MEDIA RELATIONS, STRATEGIC COMMUNICATIONS DEPARTMENT, OREGON HEALTH & SCIENCE UNIVERSITY, COMMUNICATIONS DIRECTOR, OHSU OREGON NATIONAL PRIMATE RESEARCH CENTER
• JACQUIE CALNAN, PRESIDENT, AMERICANS FOR MEDICAL PROGRESS

The leaders of this track have more than 60 collective years of experience in handling animal rights activists’ false claims, protests and illegal actions against institutions and members of the research community. They have responded to ALF attacks, animal rights infiltrations and media and social media campaigns against their institutions and can provide valuable lessons learned. Throughout the day-long program, this track will deploy an interactive discussion format to present case histories and action steps to assist attendees in preparing for a crisis.

Track C: Communicating About Research to Friends, Family and Students

Instructs members of the biomedical research community on how to discuss their work with animals with a variety of audiences, from K–12 students and teachers to friends, family and those unfamiliar with the basic animal research process. Participants will develop their personal stories and sharpen their presentation approaches. They also will receive a handbook that helps them prepare meaningful, well-articulated conversations about lab animal research and its benefits for human and animal health. This track will cover the following material:

COMMUNICATING ABOUT ANIMAL RESEARCH TO NONSCIENTISTS
Participants will review the essentials steps of developing a compelling presentation or just the right response to a question that the public might have about the care and use of animals in biomedical research. Participants will review talking points and key messages along with strategies for connecting with nonscientists, ranging from elementary students to adult audiences.

DEVELOPING AND PRACTICING YOUR PERSONAL STORY
Participants will review existing resources that can assist them in sharing their science with nonscientists, and they will have the opportunity to draft their own personal story, illustrating the power and potential of animal-based medical research. Participants will work in small groups to refine their messages and to practice the delivery of their presentations in a welcoming and supportive environment. Participants will leave this session better prepared, confident and enthusiastic about sharing their work and their passion for biomedical research with others, from schoolchildren to adult audiences.

TRACK LEADERS:

• KRISTEN BOCANEGRA, VICE PRESIDENT, AMERICANS FOR MEDICAL PROGRESS
• DR. CINDY BUCKMASTER, DIRECTOR, CENTER FOR COMPARATIVE MEDICINE, BAYLOR COLLEGE OF MEDICINE; VICE PRESIDENT-ELECT, AMERICAN ASSOCIATION FOR LABORATORY ANIMAL SCIENCE; CHAIR, AMERICANS FOR MEDICAL PROGRESS

Kristen Bocanegra is the creative mind behind many of AMP’s innovative public outreach programs that highlight the beneficial and humane nature of animal-based research. She is the producer and host of AMP’s popular Veterinarians Speaking for Research DVD and helped develop AMP’s Michael D. Hayre Fellowship in Public Outreach, which has fostered such programs as Speaking for Research, Pro-Test for Science and Speaking Honestly: Animal Research Education (SHARE).

Dr. Cindy Buckmaster has found her life’s work in Laboratory Animal Science and is committed to the development of dedicated and compassionate professionals who work hard for our animals and the lifesaving work they support. She believes that we are silent heroes to millions of people and animals and that our work makes a profound difference in this world. She also believes that our silence is fueling the activist agenda for promoting hatred toward those devoted to improving the quality of human and animal lives and that our visibility can dilute this agenda in unique ways. She is calling for a campaign of visibility from the Laboratory Animal Science community and would like its members to consider the possibilities for change that visibility will bring.