The first paragraph of this media alert from a hospital gives all the
facts a mother would need to participate in “Take Your Daughter to
Work Day”:
The third annual TAKE YOUR DAUGHTER TO WORK DAY is sched-
uled for April 27. Because of the educational and occupational
value associated with this event, Mary Lanning Hospital is encour-
aging women employees to bring their fifth through eighth grade
daughters to work. A luncheon and a series of planned activities
will take place between 12:15 p.m. and 3:45 p.m.
The hospital would follow “Take Your Daughter to Work Day” with
a news release that told how many mothers and daughters partici-
pated and contained quotations from some of the girls about their
experiences.Formatting the News Release or Fact Sheet
The following basic information should be placed at the top of news
releases and fact sheets to help editors and reporters use them easily:- a letterhead or a heading with the source’s name, address
and phone number - instructions for release: “FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE”
tells the media that the information may be used now;
“FOR RELEASE AT (TIME, DATE)” means the information
cannot be published or aired until after the specified
time - the date the information was prepared, either at the top
of the page or in the dateline - a dateline that tells where the story originated (optional)
- the name and phone number of one, and preferably
two, contact persons
Like the format of a news story, the format for the body of a news
release or fact sheet follows these basic guidelines: - It is typed and double-spaced.
- It has 1- to 1 1/2-inch margins.
- Copy begins one-third of the way down on the first page.
- Copy is on one side of the page only.
- A slug appears at the top of each subsequent page with
the story name and page number. - Lists are indented and highlighted with bullets.
- Subheads divide and mark content changes.
- It uses journalistic editing marks, such as “more,” “-30-”
or “###” at the bottom of the page. - A summary title or headline is optional but often
included to tell the reader the topic.
496 MIXED MEDIA
FIGURE 21.2
EXAMPLE OF A PUBLIC SERVICE
ANNOUNCEMENT