Businesses with a clear understanding of the press’s objectives are more likely to foster effective relations with the media and avoid public relations pitfalls, according to veteran broadcast journalist Leslie Skipper.
Mr Skipper, who has worked with the BBC and ITN in a career spanning 30 years, believes it is in the interest of businesses to better equip executives with the necessary skills to get corporate messages across to greater effect in the media.
A media trainer, Mr Skipper is a frequent visitor to Malta after becoming enamoured with the island while on holiday in 2008. He returns to lead a workshop themed Pressing the Press, the first event of newly established event organiser BLM Insights at the Radisson Blu, St Julian’s, on January 25.
An extension of Business Leaders Malta – the network set up by Konnekt, Mdina Partnership and Jugs Malta – BLM Insights’ mission is to organise knowledge-sharing events aimed at entrepreneurs, professionals and managers.
Mr Skipper explained the programme of Pressing the Press would be beneficial to human resources managers, public relations executives and marketing managers, or any media-facing company representatives.
The workshop aims to give participants an understanding of how journalists operate and their objectives, and learn better interview techniques and how to formulate press releases suitable for publication. Mr Skipper will also talk about crisis media plans and tactics, and share tips to sharpen presentation skills and how to handle question and answer sessions. Participants will participate in mock TV interviews and practice speech delivery.
Mr Skipper has edited domestic news bulletins in the UK and was a member of the BBC teams awarded Sony Gold Radio Awards for coverage of the London bombings and the detention of Iraqi president Saddam Hussein. He continues to train BBC journalists.
Mr Skipper recently returned to the BBC newsroom for a short stint while the broadcaster experienced a crisis of its own which led to the departure of the director-general.