The answers - good answers - will only come about through a whole lot of people thinking about it and talking about it and trying stuff. And that's what participatory democracy is about.
A great article on Students for a Democratic Society quoting College Park SDS's Jon Berger appeared in the Sunday 13 April issue of the Baltimore Sun.
This is a pretty significant article. This is one of the first profiles of SDS in the Washington-Baltimore area from the mainstream press. In the article, SDS is portrayed as positive, youthful, and intelligent. Written by a student, the piece speaks to sympathies for SDS and student activism from the student body. Even though there are a couple of misquotes, incorrect facts, the article very accurately expresses our commitment to change, our patience, and our hope for the future.
The resurrected organization has a long way to go before becoming a mass student movement. For now, members are focused on internal discussion and reaching out to other students. And they're willing to be patient.
Jon Berger, a College Park freshman, said, "A big part of this is education, it's hosting speakers and showing movies and having discussions. ... Because we don't have all the answers and we don't pretend to have all the answers.
To my dismay, SDS is shown as powerless in the article. This is really unfortunate, especially because SDS is really about building student power, i.e. fighting the disempowerment that is both a symptom of a corporate university and a prerequisite for its existence. I guess its mostly our fault - neither College Park nor DC chapters have made much of an impact on policy or practice of the powers that be.
Media work is hard work. Radical organizations have been positioned outside the mainstream and the for-profit media has a history of vilifying activists - yet we all want our work to garner the attention of the public eye. Communicating effectively with the media is necessary to get press. The cliche, "there's no such thing as bad press" might be valid for celebrities and politicians, but is less than kind to people or organizations trying to build a movement and gain support. How than can we organizers and activists not just get press, but the press we want? By communicating strategically with the media.
What is strategic communication? From the interviews for the Sun piece and from previous interactions with the media, my sisters and brothers and I have learned a few things about what it means to communicate strategically.
1. Present a focused, deliberate message
Before any interview, especially group interviews, sit down with everyone involved and have a conversation about what is going to be discussed and why. Ask questions like: Why are we being interviewed? What do we want people who read/see/hear the story to know? Where is our experience? What do we know? What are we comfortable talking about? Use the answers to distill something concrete and accessible. Something that can be reduced to a short quote in a newspaper or a soundbite on TV or radio and still make sense.
2. Less theory more action
Reporters and readers don't really care about the theory behind our organizing. It doesn't make headlines. It doesn't sell papers. It often requires book-length explanations. The media wants Who? What? Where? When? How? and we should give it to them.
3. Stick to talking points
Interviews can be really stressful and reporters are really good at making you talk. It is your job to give them only information you want to be printed. Try thinking about it this way: the less you say, the less reporters have to choose from when they are picking quotes to print. This is where you can take control, by determining in advance the information you want to convey and the way in which it will be conveyed.
4. Be cordial
Even though the corporate media is not really your friend you should be nice to them. They are trying to sell a story - but it is your story. If reporters walk away angry or scared, expect those reactions from people reading the subsequent article.
5. Be consistent
Know what you are trying to say and don't contradict yourself. If an issue is ambiguous or the organization's position undecided either don't mention it or say, "that's ambiguous," or, "we're undecided." Consistency is critical to credibility. Sounding like you know what you're talking about is almost as good as actually knowing what you're talking about.
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