Press releases for routine communications are reviewed and distributed by the Communications Specialist. Press releases for significant communications require approval of the Village Manager or an Assistant Village Manager prior to release. Paid Advertising All Village paid print advertising should include the Village’s logo and be designed in accordance with the Village’s logo usage guidelines. To ensure brand consistency, the design of all paid advertising should be done in conjunction with the Communications Specialist and requires his/her approval prior to ad placement. Media Interactions Media interactions include responding to questions and inquiries from media outlets and participating in interviews. “Media” refers to all individuals and organizations who maintain print, broadcast, or digital communication vehicles for public consumption. This includes newspapers, magazines, television, blogs, digital news sites and other vehicles. All Village employees and volunteers should notify the Village Manager about routine and non-routine media inquiries immediately upon receiving the request. Even seemingly routine media requests may be used to contribute to a larger story that may be controversial. Therefore, it is extremely important for employees and volunteers to notify the Village Manager each time they are contacted by a media representative. Routine media inquiries – one that seeks basic factual information. Examples include: seeking general information about public events, programs or services, or information that is readily available and non-controversial. Routine media inquiries may be handled by the appropriate staff person without prior approval of the Village Manager or an Assistant Village Manager. The Department Head or his/her designee should handle all media requests for the department. If other employees within the department handle the media interaction, they should inform the Department Head as soon as possible. Routine media inquiries may be handled by the appropriate volunteer without prior approval of the Village Manager or an Assistant Village Manager. The volunteer should inform their committee’s staff liaison as soon as possible of the inquiry. Employees and volunteers are expected to respond to media requests as soon as possible for routine inquiries. Non-routine media inquiries – one that seeks the interpretation of a policy; requests employee records or other extensive public records; requests sensitive or controversial information that may affect the Village’s public image or citizen confidence; requests information related to legal claims or lawsuits; or requests information about emergency situations. Non-routine media inquiries should be handled directly by the Administration department when possible. If an employee or volunteer receives a non-routine media inquiry directly, the employee or volunteer should immediately consult with the Village Manager or an Assistant Village Manager prior to responding to the media inquiry. At
Village of Pinehurst – External Communications Policy
Page 7
Made with FlippingBook - Online catalogs