This Just In: Savvy PR at Your Library

It's going to be one of those days. I am late because I have been at a Chamber of Commerce meeting. The message light on my phone is flashing hysterically. Before I put my purse away, a staffer appears at my door with messages to call reporters at all three of the local television stations. Quite a start at the Mesa County Public Library District (MCPLD) in Grand Junction, CO.

I take a deep breath and play back the voice-mail. Mary, local government reporter at the Daily Sentinel, says to give her a call and so does Sean at the almost daily Free Press. While I am sorting these out, the phone rings. "Hi, this is Dave at KNZZ news radio. Could you come to our station at 6:45 a.m. tomorrow for an interview?"

What the heck is going on that I am so popular with reporters today? Worst-case scenarios flip through my mind ranging from "Child Molester Arrested at Library" to "Terrorists Caught Using Library Computers." Cautiously, I ask Dave why he wants the interview.

He tells me he has heard a Colorado Public Radio program in which a librarian was talking about how cuts in state funding to libraries have caused severe repercussions across the state.

Okay, now I remember getting a press release from the Colorado State Library about the cuts. I even remember faxing it out under our letterhead to all the media outlets. So between the public radio program and the press release, the reporters are salivating over the chance for a big scoop. Thanks to my chat with Dave at KNZZ, I know they expect me to tell them that this loss of state funding means that at the very least library lovers will find the library open fewer hours and that the book budget will be slashed to virtually nothing.

The truth, as usual, is not as amenable to sound bytes. As I call each reporter back, I negotiate the terms of the interview. I try to explain succinctly the intricacies of library funding and the differences between construction bonds, which require an election to get voter approval; property taxes, which provide operating funds; and state grants, which support a statewide network that handles everything from interlibrary loan to continuing education for library employees. This civics lesson is mostly lost on the 22-year-old television reporters, and they want to talk to me anyway. "Sure, come on down," I say.

Newspapers are easier. I can conduct the interviews by phone, and the print media can handle longer explanations. Even a short article provides some background about the issue. The newspaper reporters need to file their stories before noon, so I talk to them first. Then I schedule the television crews for early afternoon so they can edit the film in time for the 5:30 news. And then there is that 6:45 a.m. radio program tomorrow with Dave.

This time, all goes well. The reporters had hoped for a juicier story, but they all hung in there with me, and what I said into the mike and to the press was fairly if somewhat prosaically reported. Although one TV reporter couldn't help adding in a doom-laden voice, "So, thanks to the state budget crises, Mesa County Public Library District may have a hard time convincing voters that now is the time to approve funding for a new library." Unfortunately, she may be right.

Repeat the above scenario; only instead of budget cuts insert the Patriot Act. This time the reporters had heard that librarians in Boulder, CO, were destroying records to prevent any government agency accessing what patrons were reading or looking at on the Internet.

Although reporters take pride in journalistic neutrality, the questions they ask lead me to believe that they are evenly split between those who hope we are fighting for the cause of truth, justice, and the right to read and those who think Boulder is a hotbed of the radical left. MCPLD surely wouldn't be unpatriotic and undermine the intent of the Patriot Act—would we?

Once again, I negotiate what I am willing to talk about. MCPLD is trying to get a bond issue passed so we can build a new central library. I stress to the reporters that if there is one thing we do not need right now, it is controversy that could polarize voters. I then tell them that I am willing to go on record to say that our automation systems keep only the records necessary to conduct business and then they are purged. We have not, I emphasize, adopted any new procedures in light of the Patriot Act. I add that in general I believe people ought to be free to read what they want without fear of government intrusion. That being said, however, we are a law-abiding organization, and we would not undermine the Patriot Act by changing any policies. This time-honored technique is known as weasel wording.

Given that information, most of the reporters decided they would stick with the AP wire report about those radicals in Boulder and let it go at that. Whew! I like to be as righteous as the next librarian, but my strong practical streak keeps the promise of a new and sorely needed building in the forefront. A couple of days later, an editorial appeared in the newspaper decrying misguided librarians on the other side of the state.

Just how is it that a medium-sized library, in a community of about 120,000 people, can quicken the hearts of reporters all over town? Through the years we haven't had much in the way of scandal or drama. Oh, sure, television stations and newspapers like to get a picture of children watching a puppet show with rapt attention. But it is hard to get them to do a story ahead of time to publicize an event.

In the third year of actively promoting MCPLD at every opportunity, we've done everything from taking out quarter-page ads to highlight programming to holding press conferences to announce new services. Our intent has been to raise the library's profile in the community prior to seeking voter approval to build a new central library building.

The more we banged our drum, the more the media paid attention. Soon they were calling us instead of the other way around. I don't think I will ever breathe easy when confronted with hungry reporters who need to fill airtime or newspaper space. But with practice, advice from experts, and a strong conviction that libraries are a force for good, I can confront the issue of the day with confidence.