Media coverage is a great way to raise awareness of ankylosing spondylitis (AS) and promote the activities and events that NASS and its members and supporters are involved in.
The media is always on the lookout for good stories, or a local angle on a national story, especially those with a human interest angle. There are three types of ‘local story':
News: For new stories or new angles to existing stories that are news in the media sense and break the ‘so what' barrier
Features: A ‘human interest' feature is a personal story which may be one family's experience, a triumph over tragedy, anything that is centred on a person or people who have experiences to which readers can relate. An analytical feature could be an opinion piece, a survey based on in-depth research, or a look at the background to current statistics.
Events listings/diary: If you have a forthcoming fundraising event, and you think it's big enough for local media coverage, try to make sure it is mentioned in the ‘forthcoming events' sections of all local papers. Contact local radio as they will often cover an event if they know about it in advance and may even send a reporter down.
Use the following links from more information and help on:
- Creating your story and writing a press release
- How to contact journalists
- Recent media coverage received by NASS and its members and supporters
- Recent press releases issued by NASS
Top tip
Think local! You probably have two free daily newspapers in your area, not to mention local radio and news channels. Local papers in particular are usually keen for good quality local stories and these should be your primary focus in trying to get media attention! National media are inundated with requests for team coverage for the many, many rallies out there, so focus on what will get you noticed.