Public information activities must support other components of health education and risk reduction activities.

Target audiences for public information activities must be selected, based on needs identified through the community needs assessment.

Objectives for public information must be based on a realistic assessment of what communications can be expected to contribute to prevention.

Messages must be based on the target audience's values, needs, and interests.

Messages and materials must be pretested with the target audience to assure understanding and relevance to their needs and interests.

Community representatives must be involved in planning and developing public information activities to ensure community "buy in."

Commit adequate time, effort, and resources to communication planning and pretesting.

Review existing market research on the target audience to understand what will motivate them.  (Conduct new research only when necessary.)

Make sure that messages and materials appear where the target audience will pay attention to them.

Produce/tag existing public service announcements (PSAs) that are of high production quality, community-specific, marketed to stations, and targeted to audiences likely to see them when public service air time is available (such as "fringe" viewing times).

Combine PSAs with news and other uses of the mass media to increase exposure to prevention issues.

Use a combination of the mass media and community channels that will reach the target audience.

Work collaboratively with other organizations and/or community sectors that have complementary strengths.  Begin to coordinate as early as possible in program planning.

Use a two-pronged communication strategy to focus both on what an individual should do and on factors that help enable individual change such as peer approval and community support.

Track progress and identify when and what kind of changes are needed in public information activities.

Set reasonable, short-term public information objectives to reach the long-term goal. Then, commit to public information as one program component over the long term. (Remember that "one-shot" public information campaigns are unlikely to leave a lasting effect, and that progress toward prevention goals is incremental.)

In general,

• Television:
  • reaches the most and broadest range of people
  • is not as targeted as other media channels
  • covers issues in very short segments
  • conveys human interest and personal stories well
  • might have calendars of events
• Radio:
  • stations have more narrowly defined listeners (e.g., older teens, young adults, and drivers) and can target more discretely
  • can be cheaper to work with than television (e.g., can use announcer copy public service announcements)
  • call-in shows offer opportunities for two-way exchange
  • may have more frequent news coverage than other media
  • covers issues in very short segments (e.g., 10-second sound bytes)
  • may produce public service announcements if they perceive that there is a local interest
• Newspapers/Magazines:
  • offer space to explain in more detail
  • can be re-read, encouraging discussion
  • are less emotional media than radio/television
  • are more likely to have calendars of events
  • may have a narrow target audience (e.g., a local Spanish-language newspaper)
• Outdoor Media:
  • include billboards, transit advertising (in subways and bus stops, on buses and taxis)
  • are generally used for advertising
  • are good for "at-a-glance" reminders
  • in some cases (inside buses) might "capture" the viewer long enough to absorb a longer message
  • can use locations to target your audience, based on where they live or work
  • may offer public service space

From "Working with the Media" in Nutrition Intervention in Chronic Disease: A Guide to Effective Programs.

• Introduce a new activity with a media breakfast.
• Promote participation in an activity or event.
• Take pictures at events, recognition ceremonies, presentations – use them to help place stories in local newspapers or organizational newsletters.
• Announce personnel changes, celebrity involvement.
• Recruit volunteers or program participants.
• Announce grant awards or major contributions.
• Invite the media to any celebrations or recognition ceremonies.
• Tie events or information to the calendar – holidays, annual HIV/health-related days, weeks, or months.
• Make statements on HIV-related public policies.
• Highlight local aspects of national stories.
• Weave media coverage (a video, audio excerpt, a slide of print coverage) into community presentations.
• Report results from an intervention or activity.
• Communicate a message that will reinforce community intervention topics.
• Promote CDC PSAs to local stations, with local tags.
• Produce a series of articles or broadcast news or feature segments on the topic in partnership with the media.
• Send a four-color postcard with live announcer copy for a PSA to radio stations.
• Produce a Q and A column or quiz for community newspapers.
• Seek coverage for events.
• Conduct a yearly campaign lasting for 3 to 4 weeks featuring activities such as posters or displays in the community.
• Seek in-kind help, such as art work, video dubbing, and PSA and slide production to entice a media outlet into becoming a program sponsor.
• Produce articles for constituent, trade, or employee newsletters.
• Write letters to the editor, op eds (a page of special features usually opposite the editorial page), articles, or guest editorials to promote your topic through another angle.
• Promote activities through media calendars of events.
• Produce a PSA or feature production (such as a call-in) on cable television, public broadcasting (PBS) channels, university radio/television departments (perhaps as a class project).
• Develop a newspaper supplement on HIV/AIDS. The newspaper advertising department can help you develop it and locate businesses to advertise.
• Identify, duplicate, and tag with your program identification any PSA developed elsewhere (with permission).
• Meet with a newspaper editorial board. Tell them about your issue, related community needs, and your position; urge them to take a stand and give you coverage.