Amplifying the community health center movement and the issues that impact our work through news media requires a strong relationship between health centers and reporters. Most journalists have honest intentions and are invested in maintaining positive relationships with the people they interview. Regardless, spokespeople must be prepared in case an interview veers off course to navigate difficult or sometimes hostile questions (this rarely happens!). In this session, attendees will learn how to pivot, bridge, and redirect conversations during an interview while staying calm, professional, and focused on their key messages.

Learning objectives

• Know how to respond to negative, or even hostile, questions
• Know how to redirect responses back to your key messages
• Know how to refocus an interview if the interviewer tries to steer towards an unrelated direction

Presented by Jay Geer, President, Miller Geer & Associates, and James Chisum, Vice President, Miller Geer & Associates.