Highlights
We in the justice system are receiving more exposure from our press releases and digital media than ever before from emerging national online news sources.
This means new powers and greater responsibilities. We need to understand what is happening and why.
By digital media or proactive efforts I mean press releases, podcasts, audio, video, radio and television programs that you create and deliver via the Internet.
Author
Leonard Adam Sipes, Jr.
Former Senior Crime Prevention and Crime Statistics Specialist for the Ministry of Justice Clearinghouse. Former Director of Information Services, National Crime Prevention Council. Former adjunct associate professor of criminology and public affairs at the University of Maryland, University College. Former police officer. Retired federal senior spokesperson.
Former advisor to presidential and gubernatorial campaigns. Former advisor to the national media campaign “McGruff-Take a Bite Out of Crime.” Successful media campaigns against crime produced by the state.
Thirty-five years leading award-winning (50+) public relations for state and national criminal justice agencies. Interviewed thousands of times by every national news outlet, often focusing on crime statistics and research. Created the first state and federal podcast series. Produced a unique and emulated style of proactive government public relations.
Certificate of Advanced Study – Johns Hopkins University.
Author of ”Media Success: Everything You Need to Survive Reporters and Your Organization‘ available from Amazon and other booksellers.
Sign up for notification of new articles on the front page of this site.
Article
I am not sure that everyone within the law enforcement communities understands what is going on in the local and national media landscape. Media outlets across the country are being battered by revenue losses. Thousands of reporters and support staff are losing their jobs or being asked to do more.
Google Search is making the transition to AI and new algorithms, and websites are taking a huge hit. Artificial intelligence is starting to provide answers instead of links to news sites.
The Washington Post has lost 50 percent of its audience. They lose tens of millions of dollars. The news media landscape is changing dramatically, with new forms of digital media taking their place.
What’s changing
There are now national digital media sources using artificial intelligence to scrape news content from sources and deliver it on their platforms.
“None of the AI writers seem to have a specific beat, except possibly what can best be described as ‘police exploits’, which they all cover with enthusiasm. Hoodline’s sites are full of stories about both arrests and police PR events, which makes me think Hoodlines AI tools rely heavily on press releases from local police forces.”
I live in two parts of the country, and it is clear that local media simply publish press releases from law enforcement and judicial agencies as their main source of content.
Your Pittsburg law enforcement press release now ends up in Boston and in markets across the country. National news media use some of this material. This concept is still in its infancy, but could expand quickly.
What does this mean for you?
After 35 years leading media relations for state and national criminal justice agencies, this means you have to expect a much wider audience than you are used to. This can have consequences for your agency; something intended for your local or state market may attract a larger audience than you intended.
Stories about crime and justice are relevant. With fear of crime at record levels, according to Gallup, what happens locally could matter to other parts of the county.
It also means your proactive media efforts can have more power. The days of the experienced and smart crime reporter are all but over. More than ever, your press releases fall into the hands of general assignment reporters, who will simply report what you say without further clarification or fact-checking.
I traveled the country after creating successful television and radio programs and podcasts in the justice field teaching others how to do the same. I preached that agencies now have virtually unlimited power to bypass mainstream media sources to get your message out. There are now sheriff’s departments releasing a steady stream of digital products (i.e. podcasts, video, audio) that are part entertainment and part news.
In my teaching efforts, I preached that we are responsible for balance and accuracy and for presenting both sides of a story. Now, if we are the sole source of how a story is told, we have ethical and practical obligations. There are still reporters at the national and local levels who are able to see obvious falsehoods or inconsistencies in your products that can cast doubt on your claims. So a commitment to accuracy is in the public’s (and your) best interest.
Conclusions
Polls show high levels of trust in law enforcement, regardless of demographics. That’s not the case for the media, although local news outlets are still more trusted than their national counterparts.
There are emerging national and regional news outlets that distribute your content without your knowledge. How long they last and how much they grow will change. It’s a new digital media world with real consequences for the way we communicate.
You need to understand that there are plenty of lesser-known national media sources that cover crime issues. You don’t want to be on their radar if you create proactive media with inaccuracies or blatantly one-sided content. Good, experienced reporters still exist who can (and will) challenge your efforts. I say this despite the fact that some sheriffs are aggressively marketing their digital media and don’t seem to care about being challenged.
They “will” care if something that needs to be promoted becomes a negative national narrative.
But law enforcement and justice agencies have a new power to communicate, if used responsibly. Just understand that everything you create needs to be viewed through a new lens. You can create a press release or podcast that conveys information honestly but attracts a broader audience (including advocates) who may question your claims.
It is in your interest to apply journalistic ethics to make sure the story is correct. This requires a new breed of media relations or public affairs officers who understand that the news landscape is changing and that their proactive media must be held to a higher standard.
I once went to the head of an agency who gave me false information about a breaking story and even though it didn’t sound quite right, I assumed he knew what he was talking about, so I followed up on his claims. They turned out to be false. He resigned. The story became deeply negative.
Justice media relations practitioners should have the ability to push back when necessary to ensure the correct facts are presented fairly. If they do, they now have more power than ever before to get their message out and influence public opinion.
Privacy Policy
We do not collect your personal information. See our privacy policy under ‘About this site’.
See more
See more articles on crime and justice at Crime in America.
Most dangerous cities/states/countries in the most dangerous cities.
US crime rates versus national crime rates.
National recidivism rates of offenders for recidivism of offenders.
Crime in America.Net RSS feed (https://crimeinamerica.net/?feed=rss2) offers subscribers the opportunity to stay up to date with the latest news, publications and other announcements from the site.
