The (Dark) Art of Public Relations!

For over a decade, I have spent the third Monday evening of each month in a local pub, where I run a SciBar. What is a SciBar? It gives local researchers the chance to present their work to the public; the scientists improve their communication skills, and the public gains a greater understanding of science. It’s great fun. At the last SciBar, four PhD students presented: How Much Do You Trust a Science Headline? The highlight was the paper in Nature Communications: Fenamate NSAIDs inhibit the NLRP inflammasome and protect against Alzheimer’s disease in rodent models (1), which turned into the headline: “Only 3p – the cost of the pill that could beat Alzheimer’s” in the Daily Mail. The research group was inundated by calls from the press asking for interviews and, more sadly, from patients and their families in search of what the press was implying was a cure. Then the conversation turned to science communication in general: how do you get people to understand your work – especially when it’s medical research – when the filter through the popular press distorts the message? I thought I’d share our ideas in the hope that some of you might find it useful.

Maximum result for minimum effort. Whether it’s explaining the inflammasome or promoting your premium IOL practice, focus your efforts on what will give you the maximum exposure to your target audience. And today, that still means the mainstream media (MSM). When you’re dealing with the MSM, there are three key ways to get your message across. First, you should write the article yourself; find the best possible angle, pitch it at the level of the intended audience, and send it as a press release to every journalist and TV news producer you can find. Journalists often have to write at least 10 articles a day – make it easy for them by doing it for them. Second, a picture paints a thousand words. If you have a print-quality, simple and clear graphic that illustrates your work, use it. If you don’t, make one. Place it on your website, and get it out with the press release. Third, take a leaf from the PR and communications agencies by writing what’s known as an ‘objection handler’ – essentially a well-thought FAQ page. Try to guess all of the questions that might be asked, list them, and provide the answers. These will all help reduce the chance of your work being misinterpreted and misreported – and increase the chance of your work (or what your practice can do) being reported as widely as possible. So, hijack the dark arts of PR, and use the inner workings of the MSM to educate to your advantage!

Mark Hillen
Editor