Fire Spokesperson’s 

Pocket 

Media Guide 

PRINT • RADIO • TELEVISION • INTERNET • PRINT • RADIO 
 

 

As someone who speaks with the 

news media about residential fires 

in your community, you play a major 

role in communicating important fire 

safety and prevention information to 

the public. 

This pocket media guide shows 

you how to make the most of these 

“teachable moments” – media 

interviews following a fire, when the 

public’s interest and attention are at a 

peak. In addition to providing the facts 

about the fire, you also can share one 

or more messages that encourage the 

viewer/reader to take action that could 

save a life.

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 Here’s what you can do:

 Before an Interview: 

1.	 Put fire safety and prevention 

messages in your own words so they 

seem natural to you. 

2.	 Make note of fire safety and prevention 

related services the fire department 

and local businesses offer that the 

community may not be aware of; for 

example, escape planning, free smoke 

alarm installation programs, etc. 

3.	 Consider using statistics to create 

powerful “sound bites.” You can find 

national, state and county fire 

statistics at: 

-	 CDC’s WISQARSTM (Center for 

Disease Control and Prevention’s 

Web-based Injury Statistics Query 

and Reporting System database) 

(www.cdc.gov/ncipc/wisqars). 

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-	 State and local health departments. 

Click on ‘State Links’ at www. 

astho.org. ASTHO is the Association 

of State and Territorial Health 

Offi cials. 

-	 CDC WONDER (Wide-ranging Online 

Data for Epidemiologic Research) 

(http://wonder.cdc.gov/).

 4.	 Practice saying your sound bites so you 

are comfortable with them. 

Sample sound bites: 

• 	“In the U.S. someone dies in a 

house fire every 3 hours.” United 

States Fire Administration (USFA). 

• 	“Every X days, someone in our state 

dies in a house fire. These deaths 

can be prevented.” 

For quick reference, create your own 

sound bites and write them in the space 

provided on page 17. 

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During an Interview: 

While it always is important to answer a 

reporter’s specific questions about the 

fire, it’s also important and appropriate 

for you, as a community leader, to 

provide additional safety and prevention 

information during the interview. 

No one knows more than you do how 

tragic a home fire can be. There may be 

times when you feel an on-the-scene 

interview is not the best time to talk 

about what could have been done to 

prevent a fire or the larger issues behind 

home fires. In these cases, follow-up or 

second-day stories may be more 

appropriate opportunities to provide 

safety and prevention messages. 

Here are some ways you can 

communicate prevention information. 

Keep safety and prevention messages 

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FIRESAFETY.GOV : 4
 
 

 

closely linked to the current fire story; the 

more tailored the message, the more likely 

it will capture the media’s attention. 

1. Mention safety and prevention tips 

and facts 

Remind people about how to prevent 

fires from occurring and what they can 

do to lessen or avoid injury during a fire. 

Sample sound bites: 

• “Cooking is the leading cause of 

home fires in the United States. 

(USFA) When cooking, stay in the 

kitchen and keep an eye on the 

stove.” 

• “Don’t overload extension cords 

or wall sockets. A fire caused by a 

faulty electrical system can destroy 

a home and everything in it within 

minutes.” Consumer Product Safety 

Commission (CPSC). 

5 : POCKET MEDIA GUIDE
 
• “If a cooking fire starts, smother it 


with a pot lid. Never throw water 

on a grease fire.” 

• “If there’s a fire – get out and 

stay out. Never go back into a 

burning home.” 

2. Mention Smoke Alarms 

Smoke alarms save lives. But many 

homes do not have smoke alarms. 

Others have smoke alarms that don’t 

work. Similar to news stories about 

motor vehicle crashes, which almost 

always mention whether riders were 

wearing their seatbelts, encourage 

reporters to mention whether the home 

had working smoke alarms. If this 

fact is not known at the time of the 

interview, follow up with the reporter 

once the investigation has determined 

this information and ask the reporter to 

mention it in any follow-up stories. 

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Sample sound bites: 

• “This is a good time to remind 

everyone that all homes should 

have working smoke alarms. 

Install smoke alarms outside 

sleeping areas and place a smoke 

alarm on every level of your 

home, including basements.” 

• “All homes should have working 

smoke alarms. Contact your 

local fire department for more 

information about how to get 

smoke alarms for your home.” 

3. Provide Statistics 

Numbers that are meaningful to the 

viewer/reader can help them see just 

how serious the problem of residential 

fires is and compel them to take 

preventive action. National statistics 

7 : POCKET MEDIA GUIDE
 
provide the big picture, and local data 

can help drive the message home. 

Sample sound bites: 

• “Children make up 15% to 20% 

of all fire deaths. (USFA) Teach 

children never to hide if there’s a 

fire—but to get out and stay out.” 

• “Heating is the second leading 

cause of home fires. (USFA) Never 

use the stove or oven to heat your 

home.” 

• “There have been X more home 


fires in the county compared 


with this time last year. That’s a 


X percent increase. Call the fire 


department to schedule a free 


safety assessment visit.”
 

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4. Give a “Call to Action” 

People often think about their personal 

situation when they hear about another 

person’s tragedy. They may want or 

need to do something, but may not 

know what to do or where to find 

information. You can empower people 

to protect themselves by providing 

clear, concrete action steps. 

Sample sound bites: 

•Call the fire department at XXXXXXX. We can help you create and 

practice a fire escape plan for 

your family.” 

• “Here are three important things 

you can do to reduce your risk of 

injury from a home fire: 

-	 make sure your home has 

properly installed and working 

smoke alarms; 

9 : POCKET MEDIA GUIDE
 
-	 plan and practice a fire 

escape plan; and 

-	 in case of a fire, get out and 

stay out. Going back into a 

burning home can be deadly.” 

• “Keep space heaters at least 3 

feet away from anything that can 

burn - including furniture, blankets, 

curtains, and paper products.” 

(USFA) 

• “Visit www.FireSafety.gov for more 


fire safety and prevention tips.”
 

5. Direct the reporter to additional 

information and resources 

Encourage the reporter to visit 

FireSafety.gov for information and 

resources that will help complete their 

story. These resources include: 

-	 statistics and safety/prevention 

tips; and 

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-	 a library of free, high-quality 

images and broadcast-quality 

B-roll video footage of fire safety 

and prevention scenes that can 

be downloaded quickly and used 

as supporting visuals. 

For quick reference, create your own 

sound bites and write them in the 

space provided on page 17. 

After an Interview: 

Follow up with the reporter the day after 

the interview by phone or email. 

1.	 Ask if the reporter needs any 

additional information for his 

or her story. Offer to provide safety 

and prevention tips that may be 

used as a sidebar (a shorter article 

11 : POCKET MEDIA GUIDE
 
that accompanies a print article) 


or posted on the media outlet’s 

website. 

2.	 If the story has run, encourage a 

follow-up or feature story and offer 

to provide more safety and prevention tips or information about fire 

safety programs in the community. 

3.	 Provide information from the 

fire investigation that was not 

available during the interview, 

such as whether there were working 

smoke alarms in the home. 

4.	 Offer to serve as a resource for 

future safety- and fire-related 

stories. 

AFTER 

FIRESAFETY.GOV : 12
 
 

Tips for Working with the Media: 

Whether you’re a seasoned veteran or 

a rookie at media relations, it’s always 

a good idea to keep these interview 

pointers in mind: 

1.	 Carry this pocket guide with you. 

Quickly scan it before you begin 

an interview. 

Media interviews 


are opportunities to 


communicate life-saving 


fire safety and prevention 


information.
 

Tell your community 


how to stay safe!
 

13 : POCKET MEDIA GUIDE
 
2.	 Determine the one or two safety and 

prevention tips you want to mention 

in addition to the facts of the story. 

3.	 Prior to the interview, mention 

to the reporter that you’d like to 

provide a fire safety and prevention 

tip or direct people to additional 

information. 

4.	 Look at the reporter, not into 

the camera, during television 

interviews. 

5.	 Avoid answering the reporter’s 

questions with only “yes” or “no.” 

Always speak in full sentences. 

6.	 Remove sunglasses and chewing 

gum, and turn off your phone/pager 

before conducting the interview. 

TIPS 

FIRESAFETY.GOV : 14
 
 

 

7. Ask for the reporter’s name and 


contact information, and the name 

of the media outlet so that you can 

follow up with more information or 

suggest a feature story about fire 

safety and prevention. 

8.	 Provide your name and contact 

information in case the reporter 

has questions or needs more 

information. 

9.	 Emphasize the importance of 

including a safety and prevention 

message to the reporter. This may 

prevent the message from ending 

up on the cutting room floor. 

15 : POCKET MEDIA GUIDE
 
It may feel strange or even pushy the 

first few times you take the lead and 

add safety and prevention messages 

during an interview. But, your 

community looks to you for safety 

information. Providing this is one of the 

most important things you can do as 

a community leader. With practice, it 

will become more natural, even second 

nature, to share life-saving safety and 

prevention tips during interviews. 

FIRESAFETY.GOV : 16
 

TIPS 
 

Write your “sound bites” here:
 

17 : POCKET MEDIA GUIDE
 
Visit the Media/PIO pages of 

FireSafety.gov for: 

• More media relations and media 


interview tips 


• Fire safety and prevention tips 

• Statistics and data 

• Fire safety and prevention images 


(print-quality photos) 


• Broadcast quality B-roll footage of 


fire safety and prevention scenes 


• Fire-related consumer product recalls 


• Links to other fire safety and 


prevention sites 


• More! 

FIRESAFETY.GOV : 18
 
Checklist: 

Before an Interview: 

√ Put safety and prevention messages into your 


own words 

√ Make note of fire department services 

√ Collect statistics 

√ Review the “sound bites” you’ve written on 

page 17 

√ Practice saying your “sound bites” 

During an Interview: 

√ Provide safety and prevention messages 

√ Mention smoke alarms 

√ Use supporting statistics 

√ Give a “call to action” 

√ Direct the reporter to FireSafety.gov 

After an Interview: 

√ Follow up with the reporter 

• Offer to provide additional information
 

• Offer to serve as a resource 
Media interviews are opportunities 


to communicate life-saving fire safety 


and prevention information.
 

Media interviews are opportunities 


to communicate life-saving fire safety 


and prevention information.
 

Tell your community how to stay safe!
 
This publication has been funded by the 


Centers for Disease Control and Prevention 


(CDC) in partnership with the United States Fire 


Administration (USFA), and the Consumer Product 


Safety Commission (CPSC).