Date:     Sat,  2 May 1992 18:18 CDT
From:     <BOEHLEFELD@WISCSSC.BITNET>
Subject: File 1-- Police PR meets style v. substance

A late response, but regarding the discussion of the Fresno police
press release (discussed in Cu Digest, #4.18):

I don't have a scientific sample, but I've looked at information from
a variety of police/law enforcement agencies for several years as
a journalist. I have only known one PIO who has had journalism
training before entering law enforcement, and her time on the PIO
desk was limited. Many of the releases I saw over the years included
misspellings, grammatical and other errors. (So, too, did many of
the police reports I have looked at over the years.) I have seen
similar releases about LSD being circulated on stickers with cartoon
characters, and about 'unsavory strangers' lurking in communities.

The sensationalism of the writing concerned me far more than the
minor details of spelling or apparent lack of letterhead. I have
a computer, I have a modem, I have children and I have an acquaintance
who claims to run an x-rated bbs. I also manage to keep these elements
of my life separated. But, if we acknowledge that the computer literacy
of various members of our society ranges from none to much, and that
many of us, likely, fall somewhere in between, I'm afraid hype of
the kind this press release generates will not do much in ensuring
that the potential benefits of personal electronic media will accrue
to all of us. It seems fear tactics generate fear, not understanding.
Sensationalism is not produced by 'the media' alone.

I think your response, which included reports of conversations
you apparently had with Fresno police personnel, put the actual
event in better perspective.

I'm not suggesting that every police department needs to hire a
public relations specialist (though friends in PR probably would),
but each of us who writes for public consumption would do well to
consider how we get attention for an issue we believe is important.
(The other recent post about preparing material for posting had
some good advice.)

In other words: If you want to be believed, keep it simple. Keep
it straight.

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