But even a routine call from a local reporter is enough to cause panic in many executives. Increasingly, business news is front page news, no longer relegated to the business section next to the stock tables. Critical stories about product recalls, mergers, downsizing and hostile take-overs often replace crime and politics on the front page.
Business news is hot.
Remember, reporters now demand company executives, not public relations people, for important interviews. Release the story . By being candid and careful, business leaders can turn a bad situation into a positive public relations opportunity. But understanding the media and learning how to deal with reporters is not something that can be absorbed through osmosis. The seminars, usually conducted by former broadcast journalists, provide executives a chance to learn privately from their mistakes rather than read about them in tomorrow's newspaper or view them on the nightly news.